Iowa Pharmacy Industry: Current Market Conditions

By Brad MacLiver
Authorship and profile at Google


Currently there are a number of factors that are impacting the current market conditions of the U.S. pharmacy industry in Iowa (IA). These factors are affecting the pharmacy business valuations of Iowa pharmacies and drug stores all across the U.S.

Local demographics:

Besides the business data, the valuation process also includes local market conditions and local demographics. Smaller communities have less growth potential and with the declining profits a buyer will need to purchase at a lower value because they will have to service the debt from a business loan and still try to make a living. The same is true for communities that have lost some population due to economic conditions, or communities with a high rate of unemployment. Fewer people and fewer customers with the ability to purchase results in fewer sales and less chance of any substantial improvement in the near term. The result of this is a lower pharmacy business value.

Iowa Pharmacists Shortage:

Iowa pharmacies and pharmacies across the country have had difficulties in finding pharmacists and this shortage of pharmacists not only affects employee opportunities it also affects the amount of potential independent buyers. 

Fewer Buyers:

There are also fewer corporate buyers. Some of the largest pharmacy chains have been purchased and consolidated in the Iowa pharmacy industry roll up. Many smaller chains have run into financial difficulties and have stopped their expansion. It is more difficult to drive a price higher when there are fewer willing, or capable, to purchase.

Current Market Conditions Requires Industry Roll-up:

The consolidation of the IA pharmacy industry is required to get more traffic into a single store.  Due to simple economics, when any business has a reduction in profits they are less attractive to a buyer and pharmacy business values drop. There are many factors contributing to the downward pressure of pharmacy values and there is not any expectation of a turn around. Pharmacy owners should not be fooled by inexperienced Brokers claiming grand outcomes and over stating pharmacy business values not based on realistic market conditions.

With the consolidation of the pharmacy industry in Iowa that has been happening for several years, many new brokers have entered the market to broker pharmacy acquisitions. Most brokers do not have pharmacy related experience, nor do they use current market conditions when they value a pharmacy. Most are using simple accounting formulas that hold no sound reasoning for the value when faced with current pharmacy market conditions. Due to this many brokers are valuing pharmacies 2 to 3 times more than what the market is really willing to pay. Any inexperienced person can quote a high value to capture a listing.  However, that does not mean the over inflated asking price is what the business will actually sell for.

Mail Order Drug Stores:

Some insurance companies are designating a noticeable amount of pharmacy patients as “long-term medications” and require they only purchase the medications from mail order pharmacy companies who provide products at lower prices. This results in local Iowa pharmacies not only missing out on prescription sales, but front-end sales will also decline since the customer is not entering the store. Pharmacy mail order sales have now surpassed sales from independent retail pharmacies.

Choose a firm that can provide either a retail or specialty pharmacy business valuations based on real market conditions and does not use a simple formula for calculating the value of a pharmacy. Complex methods are used to derive the value of an IA pharmacy.

It is best to use a company that specializes in pharmacy and has extensive and current industry data.  Choose pharmacy specialists who have been working in the pharmacy industry long enough to have extensive pharmacy experience and an excellent reputation.  A company with good credentials possesses large amounts of national data.  The largest financial institutions, national chain pharmacies, regional pharmacy chains, independently owned drug stores, and Iowa pharmacy equity investment groups use the services of companies fitting this description.

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