Meet Perri from Pharmacy NEO

Tell us a little about the history of Pharmacy NEO and how it all started?
I’m a pharmacist and independent pharmacy owner, buying my first pharmacy in the CBD when I was 29. I still own that one and now have four pharmacies across Melbourne and one in Port Fairy. I purchased the pharmacy in Malvern Central in 2014. Pharmacy NEO is my business name and reflects the type of consumer we like to appeal to – the “NEO” consumer is well informed, savvy, wants great service, new and up to date products and competitive pricing.

What’s your position in the business and how big is your staff here at Malvern Central?
I’m the owner of the business and I oversee all the operations and buying across the 4 Melbourne stores. Whilst I move between each store several times a week, I have Pharmacist Managers and a great team of staff to back me up and run the day to day. At Malvern Central we have our Pharmacist Manager, Campbell, along with pharmacists Arezo, Henny and Kate and pharmacy student, Hadrian.

Our assistants are an amazing group of dedicated and knowledgeable staff and include Kimberley, Sue, Elle, Ella, Scarlet, Alyssa, Ruby and Sarah.

What’s the best part about your job?
I love the challenge of running things well. I’m a bit of a perfectionist and I like the stores to present well and offer what people are looking for. I love the interaction with the staff and customers and I love helping people.

Tell us something people might not know about the business
Pharmacy NEO is proudly independently owned and run, and whilst we may not always be able to compete with the big discount chains (and we don’t really want to), we do constantly monitor our top 200 selling lines and match them in price. Sometimes when we check prices, we are actually cheaper! If you find we are not competitive, please always ask and we will price match.

Tell us why Pharmacy NEO is such an important part of the local community
Pharmacy NEO is an important part of the community as we have so many lovely, loyal customers who rely on us for their healthcare needs. We go the extra mile to provide excellent customer service, and people appreciate that. A lot of people just come in for a chat and we get to know our customers and they know they can trust us.

During this tough year, we have continued to work through all stages of lockdown and provide our community with essential services to ensure continuity of medicines and care, including utilising electronic prescriptions and expanding our delivery services.

What is the most popular product at the moment?
Apart from the obvious hand sanitisers, thermometers and masks! We are selling more gifts, personal grooming products; eyebrow and eyelash dye, hair clippers, self-tan, and little luxuries that people are treating themselves with like beautiful Juvena skincare and ArtDeco makeup.

We have a great range of fashion masks that are constantly being refreshed with new and exciting fabrics which have been very popular!

What do you like to do in your spare time?
I have 3 teenagers and in normal times I enjoy watching them play sport. I also love watching AFL (Saints!), walking my dogs, and drinking Champagne/Chardonnay with friends and going out for dinner.

Pharmacy NEO is open 7 days a week - See store details
(Photos taken pre-COVID)