Success Story: Jason H., Winnipeg
I met Ray about a month before my store first opened, and the first meeting was a definite eye-opener! Coming from 10 years in hospital practice and with very limited business training, I was not really prepared for what a grind starting and growing a community pharmacy in a competitive market would be. Ray quickly helped me zone in on the key targets within my neighbourhood that would allow my pharmacy to grow rapidly at the outset, injecting the cash flow any new business requires to thrive. With no doctor’s office in the vicinity and set up across from a Safeway store that had been the only pharmacy in the neighbourhood for decades, Ray encouraged me to focus on delivering service that was noticeably higher-quality than my competitors in order to set myself apart. This included many health-screening days both in and out of the pharmacy, community events and supporting local organizations.
I am also not a natural sales person, but Ray taught me (eventually) how to pick up on subtle queues in conversation with prospective patients in order to zero in on their needs and increase my conversion rate. This led me to grow my prescription count rapidly right from the outset.
Over time, as my prescription count grew, Ray encouraged me to take on staff in order to “work on” my business
more, rather than just “work in” the business. Without his guidance, I would likely have delayed this step and
jeopardized future growth opportunities.
What’s unique about Ray’s service and expertise?
Ray has been successful in helping pharmacies in multiple different provinces, each with different regulatory challenges grow and succeed. He would give me perspective from other provinces in order to illustrate the importance of being diversified with my business, so that one significant regulatory change would not be able to cripple my business. I appreciated that Ray would always give me the “straight goods” and not sugar coat what he was saying. He would not be dismissive of my ideas, but rather challenge me to defend my ideas and explain to him how they would work.
With Ray, your business and family come first. He is not just there to push the corporate agenda on you. He realizes that every pharmacy’s market is unique, and what works in one market may not work in another.
For someone who is about to start working with Ray, what would you tell them to expect or prepare?
Expect to be challenged and taken out of your comfort zone. Have your main metrics ready when you meet with Ray. He is really good at developing a business plan for you, based on how much time and money you are willing to put in and the growth you would like to see. There were times when we really wanted to push, in which case the business plan was more aggressive. At times when I wanted to enjoy a little more family time, we adjusted the plan (but still achieved growth).