John Bell & Croyden

(Not Just a Pharmacy!)

 

What’s In a Name?

John Bell & Croyden can trace its roots back to 1798, when John Bell establishes his original pharmacy on Oxford Street. His son Jacob launches The Pharmaceutical Journal (1841) and then founds what is to become The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain (1842). In 1903 the business amalgamates with Charles Croyden & Co. to form the John Bell and Croyden we know today. We received our first Royal Warrant in 1909, gaining Queen Elizabeth II’s warrant in 1958 and holding it all the way through to 2022. In 1912 the business moved to Wigmore Street (our location to this day) and in 1928 is acquired by Savory & Moore, themselves subsequently bought by the Lloyds Pharmacy chain.

 

Protecting Our Valuables

In 1997 John Bell & Croyden became part of Celesio, then, in 2014, US healthcare giant McKesson. Following the sale of McKesson’s UK businesses to Aurelius the group will be known as Hallo Healthcare. However, throughout all this we have always stuck to our ICARE values in our quest for the best customer service – Integrity, Customer First, Accountability, Respect, and Excellence, these are the first things we instil in any new member of staff.

 

Standing Still

Just like everyone else we struggled during the pandemic, with staff cutbacks and reduced opening hours. I was placed on 3 months furlough due to the hospital I work with being closed whilst they worked out their plan for this unprecedented situation. However, due to some quick thinking and excellent planning skills our teams realised we had the potential to create the facilities to be one of the first community pharmacies to administer the Covid Vaccine and Covid testing in-store, driving much needed footfall into the store. We have continued these services ever since, just this month starting both the next stage of boosters and the flu vaccine.

 

Healthcare Services

A big decision was made this year to amalgamate our Pharmacy and Wholesale departments to create Healthcare Services. This allows us more scope to make joint decisions in what will benefit the business, such as the wholesale team working together with pharmacists to support local hospitals, making the best use of the staff we have around us. As a Pharmacy Technician (well almost, 92% through my course is as close as!), I officially work in Wholesale, however there are often things I can help with in Pharmacy and it allows me more freedom to do that, thus benefiting everyone.

 

 

 

The Future

We believe our new collaborative, cross-functional Healthcare Services team will continue to have success, winning more contracts with hospitals for either stock management, pharmacist support or both, as needed.

We further see the future of John Bell & Croyden, and pharmacy in general, in offering a broad range of innovative services, becoming the first port of call for patients in need of advice or treatment. This will help ease pressure on stretched GP services and ensure the future of pharmacy itself.

 

 

 

Andrew Hussey MIHSCM

Healthcare Operations Controller

andrew.hussey@johnbellcroyden.co.uk

07594 090 914

Website – johnbellcroyden.co.uk

Instagram/FaceBook – johnbellandcroyden