Cross Hills pharmacy to close (From Craven Herald)

Cross Hills pharmacy to close

9:00am Saturday 21st July 2012 in News

A pharmacist who is shutting his Cross Hills branch next week has claimed the opening of a rival “doomed” his Business .

Basit’s Pharmacy, which opened at Ashville Terrace, on Holme Lane, in February 2011 is closing its doors next Saturday, July 28, after only 18 months of trading.

Although the pharmacy will continue to operate from its Keighley branch - Hussain Dispensing Chemist - the owner, Basit Hussain, said trade had been hit by the arrival of Cross Hills Pharmacy, based in the Cross Hills Group Practice, just across the road.

“The main reason I had to close is that the doctors opened their own pharmacy in November 2011,” said Mr Hussain. “This made trading a lot more difficult.

“We hung on for as long as we could, hoping that things would improve. But we were making a loss so I had to close the pharmacy. I just wasn’t covering the overheads. Business didn’t start going down straightaway, but we did see a drop in the one-off prescriptions. Then it gradually got worse from there.”

“When I first opened the pharmacy, I felt I had done the research. Although there was Boots and the Sutton Pharmacy, there certainly was need for a new pharmacy.”

He admitted he did have reservations shortly after signing the contract to buy the former hairdressers at Ashville Terrace in the autumn of 2010. Once I found out the doctor’s were going open a pharmacy, it was too late to pull out. I tried to get out, but we had already signed the contracts.

“I knew if they were given permission, I’d be doomed. There were too many pharmacies for the size of the population and something had to give.”

Before Cross Hills Pharmacy opened in November, Mr Hussain also spoke about local residents who had concerns that a fourth pharmacy was opening in a small service area.

“Local people were saying that we really didn’t need it; what they wanted was a podiatry service,” he said. “You would think that the doctor’s would have opened this service instead.”

Mr Hussain also spoke highly of the customers who supported his business.

“Our customers are very despondent that we’re closing,” he said, adding: “I appreciate all the people who supported us and I’m willing to continue serving them from our Keighley branch. We can pick up prescriptions at the surgery in Cross Hills, dispense them at our Keighley branch and then deliver them free of charge to our customers’ home address.”

County councillor Philip Barrett (Ind, Glusburn ) said: “I’m very disappointed the pharmacy is closing. It's clear from the many residents who have contacted me that it will be greatly missed even after only a relatively short time trading.”

Cross Hills Pharmacy declined to comment.