Lloyds Pharmacy is set to close hundreds of stores based in a popular UK supermarket chain by the end of today, according to recent reports.
According to Pharmacy Business Magazine, the pharmacy chain will be shutting down all of its 237 branches based in Sainsbury's stores by the end of business on Tuesday, putting thousands of jobs at risk.
Closures for the pharmacy's supermarket-based stores were initially scheduled to take place in phases over the next year, but have now been brought forward, reports the Mirror.
The news comes after an earlier announcement that blamed "changing market conditions" for the move, which is set to put 2,000 jobs at risk across the UK.
Lloyds, which is the second largest UK pharmacy chain behind Boots, recently underwent substantial restructuring and was purchased from Sainsbury's by multinational private equity firm Aurelius.
A spokesperson from LloydsPharmacy told Pharmacy Business: “In January 2023 LloydsPharmacy announced the withdrawal of pharmacy services from all Sainsbury’s stores, to take place throughout 2023.
"It can now confirm that any remaining branches within the Sainsbury’s estate will close by 13th June 2023."
"Throughout the process, LloydsPharmacy has been committed to helping patients easily find a suitable alternative provision. It has kept patients informed of when services from their specific pharmacy will end so that they can transfer their nominations as needed."
The announcement comes after the pharmacy chain were reported to be considering closing a few standalone stores, which have not been affected by today's news.
Unlike its rivals Boots and Superdrug, Lloyds is more reliant on its pharmacy dispensing business, which accounts for approximately 87 percent of its sales, according to the Grocer Magazine.
At the time of the previous announcement, a Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: "LloydsPharmacy is withdrawing pharmacy services from our stores over the coming months."
"We will work with them to ensure customers are clear on how they can access an alternative pharmacy provision to meet their needs."
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