National Co-operative Chemists Ltd has reported an 11 per cent rise in sales and a 25 per cent rise in profits for the first half of 1999.
The company announced on October 19 that turnover before VAT had increased to £69m, with like-for-like sales (through branches operating both this year and last) up 9 per cent. Surplus before distributions, NCC's equivalent of pre-tax profits, rose from £1.6m to £2m. National Health Service sales rose by 11.1 per cent and over-the-counter sales by 10.9 per cent, which the company attributed to high standards of service, branch refurbishments and aggressive marketing.
At June 30, NCC had 263 branches. It acquired pharmacies at Plymouth, Stifford Clays (Hertfordshire), Mount Pleasant and Batley (West Yorkshire), Tain (Scotland) and three in Northampton, while disposing of one at Brownhills, Staffordshire.