BR Pharmaceuticals hungry for acquisitions and rapid growth
A YORKSHIRE pharmaceuticals distributor said it is on the hunt for acquisitions as it looks to accelerate turnover and become a “world leader” in its field.
BR Pharmaceuticals, based in Leeds, has recently completed a deal with Omar Abu Sheikha, who owns a pharmaceutical and healthcare import and distribution business across the Middle East, as well as the largest money exchange business in Amman, the capital of Jordan.
Owner of BR Pharmaceuticals, Phil Byrne, said this deal will now see the company being “reinvented”.
He said: “We’ve had a wake-up call and looked at refocusing and driving the business forward in a different way. Over the next ten years, we will see turnover rise to £50m. I don’t think we will grow organically though, it will be through acquisitions.
“We will focus on existing successful brands in the market place and also look at taking on distributors and building those brands ourselves and we will bring in brands that can fit in other countries’ business models. This deal will grow business phenomenally – the Abu Sheikha family have big aspirations.
“We want to grow the business by at least 50% by the end of 2014. And then, once we are on the acquisition trail, growing the business by 200% will be quite easily done.”
The Abu Sheikha business, established in 1994, is self-made and run by the family of 10 brothers, headed up by Omar Abu Sheikha.
BR is its first UK acquisition.
Mr Byrne said: “The Abu Sheikha family are our main distributors and I have known them for ten years. It was a desire for them to acquire our business to meet their aspirations for growth.”
The company said it will also find a “cohesive strategy” for exports, with a focus on Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
Mr Byrne said: “We want to significantly increase our exports and make our exporting business bigger than business in the UK. We want to do this because I believe that’s more profitable and less competitive for us. With the products we have got, I think we have got a good offering. Exporting will be significant this year and will be at least £1m of our turnover.”
Mr Byrne said he is focused on developing the brand to become a world leader.
“I am very much looking forward to business over the next few years. This is major turning point for us and we already have ideas in the pipeline,” he said.
“Our biggest challenge now is finding the right products for acquisition and how they can fit in with our strategy. We also have to finding the right distributors in the countries to move us forward.”
BR currently works across the UK, Europe, Middle East and African markets, supplying and marketing health and personal care brands such as Valupak vitamins and supplements and Reveal home pregnancy tests to thousands of independent pharmacies, through appointed wholesalers and distributors.
According to Mr Byrne, supermarkets’ own label pharmaceutical products are the business’s biggest competitor.
“We need to try and get the message across to people to support their local pharmacy,” he said.
