AC Health seals St. Joseph drug store deal
Ayala Healthcare Holdings Inc. (AC Health) has pushed past the final regulatory hurdle needed to close its acquisition of a significant stake in a legacy drugstore brand, adding another pharmaceutical firm to its steadily growing network of affordable medicine providers.
The healthcare arm of Zobel family-led Ayala Corp. on Tuesday said it had formally closed its investment in St. Joseph Drug on July 18, following the Philippine Competition Commission’s approval of the transaction.
“Our investment in St. Joseph Drug highlights AC Health’s dedication to expanding healthcare accessibility,” AC Health president and CEO Paolo Borromeo said in a statement.
”Integrating St. Joseph Drug into the AC Health ecosystem will streamline our pharmacy network, enhancing access to affordable and quality medicines,” Borromeo added.
Under the deal, AC Health, through pharmaceutical arm AHCHI Pharma Ventures Inc., will acquire a 49-percent stake in St. Joseph operator Joleco Resources. AC Health did not disclose its total investment.
This will add 112 St. Joseph stores to AC Health’s drugstore network, which includes Generika Drugstore with 750 stores.
AC Health plans to grow its drugstore portfolio to 1,000 stores in three years.
Apart from Generika, AC Health also operates pharmaceutical importation and distribution units IE Medica and MedEthix.
It is likewise behind Healthway Medical Network, the company that established the country’s first cancer care hospital in Taguig City.
Borromeo previously told the Inquirer that they plan to further expand St. Joseph’s footprint in Northern Luzon before gradually moving closer to Metro Manila by opening more stores in neighboring Central Luzon.
The 65-year-old drugstore chain established by pharmacist Jose “Pepe” Cruz and his wife Leila Lagman presently does not have any stores in the capital region.
