In Western Australia, in addition to a pharmacy business being owned by a pharmacist, it can also be owned by other legal entities including a pharmacist controlled company.
The ownership rules ensure that local pharmacies are owned by registered pharmacists, who are health care professionals first and foremost and are patient focused through their professional autonomy.
Eligibility requirements
To register a pharmacy business, you must: be a pharmacist, a partnership of registered pharmacists or a pharmacists' body corporate. have your pharmacy business name registered with the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC)
The majority of the proprietors of community pharmacies around Australia are direct Members of the Guild, with most of the remainder affiliated through the services that are provided by the Guild and its companies. The Guild is governed by a National Council and Branch Committees in every State and Territory.
On average Australia's 5371 pharmacies each earn $650,000 a year from dispensing medicines under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme. This compares to the $195,000 GPs earn on average from Medicare.
If done right, it can be a very lucrative investment. An independent pharmacy owner will make more money than the average staff pharmacist. In that sense, opening your own independent pharmacy offers a substantial financial incentive.
The gross margin (sales less cost of goods sold) is just over $1 million for the average pharmacy and average annual net profit equates to nearly $110,000. Rural pharmacies represent 16% of the total of 5510 community pharmacies and there is one pharmacy for every 4236 Australians.
For three decades pharmacy owners have successfully defended their state-sanctioned monopoly from supermarkets. The effect has been to make pharmacies among Australia's most valuable single-owner businesses. Some are even worth more than pubs.
But your profit as a pharmacy owner may range far below or beyond it, depending on how you run your business. In 2019, the average revenue for independent pharmacies was $3,400,000. That makes the average independent pharmacy gross profit $748,000.
Under the current CPA rules, pharmacies can only be owned by qualified pharmacists, which the Pharmacy Guild argues is necessary to ensure the provision of patient-first care.
As a minimum, you're going to need around $880,000 to start a pharmacy, factoring for inventory, rent and staffing costs. Depending on your size and location, you may need to borrow significantly more. The rent you pay for your office space will form a considerable portion of your annual expenses.
There is a progressive shortage of pharmacists in Australia, paving the way for international pharmacists to immigrate and gain employment. Immigration remains one of the best ways for overseas pharmacists to seek better employment and achieve higher levels of practice.
To work as a pharmacist in Australia, you need to apply for and be registered with the Pharmacy Board of Australia. You may also need to apply for a visa issued by the Australian Government Department of Home Affairs.
looming, particularly as pharmacists continue to be significantly underpaid for their services. The average wage for early career pharmacists (those with less than 10 years' experience) is $66,955 ($32.77 per hour), making them one of Australia's lowest remunerated, tertiary educated health professions.
A pharmacy business may be owned by (i) a partnership of registered pharmacists, or (ii) a partnership of registered pharmacist(s) and one or more eligible companies, or a partnership of eligible companies. In these cases each partner (whether a natural person or company) is required to hold a licence.
PROFIT PRIMER
A typical independent pharmacy generates more than 90% of its revenues from prescriptions. Here are some basic definitions to clarify the pharmacy profit story: Gross profit equals a pharmacy's revenues minus the cost of products (net of discounts and returns) bought from a manufacturer or a wholesaler.
Pharmacies are a necessary part of the community, and as such, they can be very lucrative businesses to own. Not only do pharmacies offer products and services that are in high demand, but they also come with many regulations and guidelines that must be followed to maintain licensure.
The average pharmacist salary in Australia is $99,500 per year or $51.03 per hour. Entry-level positions start at $85,825 per year, while most experienced workers make up to $122,494 per year.
One of the reasons is the increase of large discount chains such as Amcal, Chemist Warehouse and Priceline. Community pharmacists working at 'discount' pharmacies received the lowest rates of pay and worked the longest hours, over and above the average 35.7 hours per week of most community pharmacists.
The government pays the pharmacy (not the individual pharmacist) for the number of PBS prescriptions dispensed. Additional income is generated from selling other nonprescription products or from price mark-up on non-PBS prescriptions. This money is then used to pay for business costs, including wages.
All stores have since been rebranded under the new combined chain with a new name, logo and branding. Since the merger, TerryWhite Chemmart is now the largest pharmacy group in Australia.
Some Australian universities offer pharmacy courses that are free and some others have private tuition costs. Pharmacy degrees won't provide a job straight away, but they will open doors to opportunities in other areas of work or study. Pharmacy in Australia is a competitive industry.
There are 5,700 community pharmacies in Australia. The average Australian visits a pharmacy 14 times a year. Annually there are about 350 million individual patient visits to pharmacies.