B U S I N E S S
B A N K I N G
Supporting pharmacies into the future
Bankwest’s Pharmacy Specialists team leader highlights findings of the latest UTS Community Pharmacy Barometer, in
which pharmacists indicated strategies for dealing with widely expected losses in value over the next three years.
Paul Dwyer is
Regional Manager
– Commercial North
West, Sydney for
Bankwest and has
20 years’ experience
in corporate and
commercial banking.
He has held a number
of roles within the
banking industry
and has run his own
distribution business.
He has a strong
interest in helping
small businesses
grow, focusing
on professional
development and
financial and capital
management. He
currently manages
a team of Pharmacy
Specialists, who
provide a full range
of banking services to
pharmacy clients.
W
hen you combine Australia’s
ageing population with the fact
there are more medicines available to
prevent and treat chronic illnesses than
ever before, there can be little doubt
that the pharmacy industry has longterm viability.
At the same time, there is a growing
list of challenges that many pharmacies
will need to overcome.
Community pharmacy is undergoing
significant structural changes due to
price disclosure, generic substitutions
and discount pharmacy models, which
are increasing competitive pressures.
Other challenges include variations
to terms provided by wholesalers and
suppliers, and advances in technology
and online sales.
The sector is very important to
Bankwest. We have specialist bankers
who work closely with pharmacy
owners to build long-term relationships
and to understand their businesses.
The challenges and opportunities,
combined with the fast pace of
change, mean business owners need
to be well informed about what is
happening within the industry.
Bankwest is dedicated to ensuring
we understand our clients’ businesses,
by providing the right forums for
them to obtain the valuable insights
they need to grow.
“
Generating
alternative income
streams is important
for any business, but
particularly those
with high fixed costs.
”
That’s one way the University of
Technology Sydney (UTS) Community
Pharmacy Barometer can help.
Bankwest is proud of its association
with the UTS Community Pharmacy
Barometer and I am pleased to be
able to highlight here some of its key
findings. The Barometer measures
opinions, perceptions, potential
behaviours and ideas with data and
verbatim comments from pharmacists
and expert commentary from key
leaders of Australian pharmacy.
The Barometer’s expert panel
includes UTS Dean of the Faculty
of Pharmacy, Professor Charlie
Benrimoj, UTS Adjunct Professor
John Montgomery and Warwick
Plunkett, Pharmaceutical Society of
Australia Director.
Professor Benrimoj is leading the
way in establishing dialogue with the
industry and coming up with a range
of business solutions.
Some key findings from the
2014 Barometer highlighted how
pharmacists felt they should diversify
their income bases, how they
managed costs within their businesses
and the best ways to distribute
funds from the Pharmaceutical
Benefits Scheme and upcoming Sixth
Community Pharmacy Agreement.
The Barometer also studied the level
of optimism within the sector generally
– with regard to the ongoing viability of
the industry and the value of pharmacy
businesses. We hope that our clients
can use these results to make informed
decisions on how they can improve
their processes and operations.
One of the main opinions expressed
within the 2014 Barometer (consistent
with earlier reports of the Barometer’s
findings) was the expectation that
pharmacy businesses would lose value
over the next three years.
It was also clear that pharmacy
owners could implement strategies
now to bolster their income and
revenue to overcome this challenge.
About two-thirds of survey
respondents indicated a key strategy
for maintaining business profitability
was to decrease staffing costs. This
could be achieved by reducing hours,
as opposed to cutting employee
numbers, because, while minimising
costs is important, it should not
impinge on a business’s ability to
service customers and maintain sales.
The weight of opinion in the
survey suggested the provision of
professional services was the best
way to diversify a business’s income
base and overcome the effect of price
disclosure on both revenue and gross
profits. Generating alternative income
streams is important for any business,
but particularly those with high fixed
costs (such as rent), which is evident
in the pharmacy industry.
Those pharmacies that could offer
additional services such as Home
Medicines Review and the Diabetes
MedsCheck may be better placed
to maintain revenue and profits,
and boost the overall value of their
businesses into the future.
The UTS Community Pharmacy
Barometer is available for download
at Bankwest Connect (www.bankwest.
com.au/connect/home). Bankwest
Connect provides business leaders
with ideas, insights and innovation in
the form of industry-specific reports
and events. Connect is all about
understanding business better and the
opportunities and challenges that they
are currently facing.
At Bankwest we understand that
there’s no such thing as a ‘onesize-fits-all’ approach to business
banking. As a Bankwest client you
will have the support of our business
banking experts, who are committed,
passionate, and ready to help your
business grow.
Our dedicated team is available to
make everything easier, working closely
with clients to deliver innovative
banking solutions to help them reach
their business goals. Bankwest clients
also have direct access to senior
Bankwest executives and our extensive
team of business banking specialists.
To speak to a Bankwest Business
Specialist, call 13 7000 or visit www.
bankwest.com.au/business.
Important information and disclaimer
The information contained in this article is
of a general nature and is not intended to be,
nor should it be, considered as professional
advice. You should not act on the basis of
anything contained in this report without first
obtaining specific professional advice. To the
extent permitted by law, Bankwest, a division of
Commonwealth Bank of Australia ABN 48 123
123 124 AFSL/Australian credit licence 234945,
its related bodies corporate, employees and
contractors, accepts no liability or responsibility
to any persons for any loss which may be
incurred or suffered as a result of acting on or
refraining from acting as a result of anything
contained in this article.
JAN / FEB 2015
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