JOHANNESBURG - Clicks has opened its 500th pharmacy in Joburg and plans to expand to 900 stores in South Africa, with a pharmacy in every store.
The listed health and beauty retailer announced the opening of the pharmacy at Park Station in central Joburg, underlying its position as South Africa's largest retail pharmacy chain.
David Kneale, chief executive of the Clicks Group said that the Clicks pharmacy strategy has been aligned with the national healthcare agenda of making medicine more affordable and more accessible for all South Africans, from the outset, while improving the efficiency and quality of healthcare delivery.
"Our goal is to expand the Clicks store base in South Africa to 900 in the long term, with a pharmacy operating in every store. The opening of our pharmacy at Park Station, which is the largest railway station in Africa, highlights our commitment to making our store and pharmacy locations even more convenient to customers," he said.
Kneale said Clicks is also committed to playing a role in addressing the severe shortage of pharmacists.
"As the largest employer of pharmacy staff in the private sector in South Africa with over 2 700 pharmacy and clinic professionals, we continue to invest in capacity creation. Since 2012 the group has funded bursaries for 400 students and provided internships for 266 pharmacy graduates."