Owner guide
Selling a pharmacy business: start with who takes it over.
Whether you sell outright, bring in a partner or step back over a few years, every route ends the same way: another pharmacist running your pharmacy. This guide covers what pharmacies have been selling for, how long a sale takes, the approvals inside that timeline, and who your buyer can be.
The price
What pharmacies have been selling for.
Pharmacy business services firm AP Group put the average Australian pharmacy sale price at $2.7 million in June 2026, a record, citing strong buyer demand and a short supply of good pharmacies, as reported by the Australian Journal of Pharmacy.
An average hides a wide range. It says nothing about what any one pharmacy is worth.
The timeline
How long a sale takes.
One Victorian pharmacy broker’s published sale process puts a normal sale at 16 to 20 weeks or more, longer over Easter and Christmas. The stages it describes, in order:
Sales agreement
An exclusive agreement setting the expected price, the term and the commission.
Information memorandum
Prepared after a full appraisal of the business.
Confidentiality agreement
Signed by a buyer before they see the memorandum.
Offer and deposit
An offer, with an initial deposit held in trust.
Due diligence
21 days of financial and legal review by the buyer’s accountant and solicitor.
Contract of sale
Signed with a final deposit, after which the sale is unconditional.
Lease and approvals
The lease transfers, and the federal and state approvals come through.
That clock starts once there is a buyer. Finding one is the part no timeline covers.
Approvals
The approvals inside that timeline.
PBS approval moves to the new owner
Under section 90 of the National Health Act 1953, the incoming pharmacist applies to the federal health department for approval to supply PBS medicines, through the PBS Approved Suppliers Portal. The Department asks for applications at least 30 days before settlement and can take up to 30 business days to finalise. The application must show the state or territory authority’s requirements have been met.
The state approves the new owner too
Each state and territory regulates who may own a pharmacy. In NSW, for example, the Pharmacy Council must approve an acquisition before it goes ahead, most applications are due at least 14 days before the change, and partners, directors, shareholders and trust beneficiaries must be registered pharmacists. Other states have their own authority and rules.
Relocating at the same time
A sale combined with a move is considered by the Australian Community Pharmacy Authority, and the Department refers applicants to the Pharmacy Location Rules before they apply.
The buyer
In practice, the buyer is a pharmacist.
The PBS approval is held by a pharmacist, so the buyer pool is pharmacists. Outside the capital cities the pool of pharmacists willing to move is small, so a successor has to be found rather than waited for.
Some owners do it in stages: the pharmacist is employed first and brought in as a partner later. Three of the pharmacies on our case studies page turned a placement into a working partner.
Where we fit
We find the pharmacist. In confidence.
We recruit pharmacists. Your pharmacy is described to candidates by town or region only, financial details go out only under a non-disclosure agreement with you as the disclosing party, and our fee is quoted in writing before we start.
This is not financial advice.
This guide is general information only. It is not financial, legal, tax or valuation advice, it does not take your circumstances into account, and TalentWell does not recommend any bank, lender, valuer, broker or adviser. Figures are quoted from the published sources listed below, as at their publication dates, and citing a source is not an endorsement of it. Get independent advice before making any decision about selling or bringing in a partner.
Next step
Planning to step back? Start the search early.
Tell us where the pharmacy is and your timeframe. Nothing is advertised until you say so.