Pharmacies group in liquidation after selling all stores
The LloydsPharmacy business, which once owned community pharmacies across the West Midlands, has gone into voluntary liquidation owing £293 million to 514 creditors.
In a year-long diverstment the store estate has been sold off to individuals and in regional packages.
Lloyds, which had its headquarters in Coventry, was formed in 1973 and at its height employed 17,000 staff.
On January 16 Turpin Barker Armstrong accountants were appointed to handle the liquidation.
Of the debts £228m is owed to former LloydsPharmacys owner Diamond DCO One, which used to trade as Admenta UK who sold the business to investment firm Aurelius UK for £477m in 2021 when there were 3,500 pharmacists across 1,300 pharmacies.
All the remaining 1,054 high street stores and community pharmacies had been sold off by November 26 last year. Staff were transferred to the new owners.
Chief executive Kevin Birch had stepped down in May after eight months at the helm of the business.
Lloydspharmacy – now known on Companies House as Diamond DCO Two Limited – was the second largest multiple in the UK this time last year before the sell off.
Of the £293m, just £8.2 million of assets can be realised for Lloydspharmacy’s “preferential creditors” and £800,000 is available for “unsecured creditors”, the liquidators’ statement of affairs said.
Many people and companies are owed large sums of money, while hundreds of entries on the list are owed a nominal amount of £1.
Aurelius Crocodile, which was one of the many holding companies used to control Lloyds is owed £50m
Walsall-based Jhoots Pharmacy is owed £322,144. It bought 36 of the sites across the UK.
The Pharmacists’ Defence Association says the liquidation is a “bitter blow” for ex-employees with employment tribunal claims against the defunct high street chain.
It stressed that the claims can continue because the company has only entered creditors’ voluntary liquidation rather than administration
Lloyds Pharmacy services have also been removed out of all 237 Sainsbury’s supermarkets.
Some staff who had been employed at Sainsbury’s who were made redundant last year are currently being represented by The Pharmacists’ Defence Association and The PDA union in an employment tribunal.
The hearing was postponed due to LloydsPharmacy changing its name to Diamond DCO Two.
