The sale of Quebec’s second-largest pharmacy was scuttled Friday after independent pharmacists who own Uniprix Inc. rejected an offer from medicine distributor McKesson Canada.
The company withdrew its offer after the number of shares tendered by the deadline Friday didn’t meet the minimum conditions laid out in McKesson’s Jan. 19 offer.
McKesson said it will continue to support the independent pharmacy business model, despite withdrawing the offer.
“Our desire to help the Uniprix Group succeed and to see further growth among its banners remains strong, and we wish to pursue our longstanding business relationship,” stated McKesson Canada president Domenic Pilla.
The acquisition was seen as a defensive move to maintain retail customers.
Pilla indicated in January that the transaction would strengthen its long-standing business relationship with Uniprix for the distribution of pharmaceutical products, over-the-counter medications and consumer products.
The deal’s demise had been forecast after several pharmacist owners indicated they weren’t interested in selling their shares because they wanted to maintain their freedom.
Under the agreement that was approved by Uniprix’s board, McKesson would have acquired the Uniprix’s shares, but member-pharmacists in the co-operative style chain of 400 outlets would have remained owners of their pharmacies.
Financial details of the offer were never disclosed, but published reports said the deal was worth $72 million.
The offer followed the recent growth in Quebec by McKesson Corp., a San Francisco-based distributor of pharmacy products. That included last summer’s acquisition of the 270-outlet Quebec chain that operates under the Proxim and ProxiMeds banners.
Uniprix owns and operates the Uniprix, Unipharm and Uniclinique banners and has annual sales of about $1.6 billion, making it the second-largest in Quebec.
It is a co-operative with independent owners who are often courted—and sometimes picked off—by retailing powerhouses such as market leader Jean Coutu and Shoppers Drug Mart, owner of the Pharmaprix brand in Quebec.
