Scottish startup raises £10m to spearhead digital transformation in pharmacy sector

Phlo, a digital pharmacy leader based in Glasgow and with offices in London and Birmingham, has closed a £10m Series A round led by family office Thairm Bio.

The funds will be used to expand the reach of Phlo Digital Pharmacy, the first UK digital pharmacy to offer patients same-day medication delivery, and to scale Phlo Connect, a digital infrastructure platform for healthcare providers.

This announcement comes as momentum behind digital transformation mounts in the pharmacy sector, powered by providers seeking solutions that will equip them to cope with supply chain fluctuations, spiralling operating costs, record workforce shortages, and the predicted closure of up to 3000 high street pharmacy branches by 2024.

Phlo’s Series A round, a combination of equity investment and the conversion of existing loan notes, follows the £2m raised by Phlo in 2020 in the third largest recorded healthtech Crowdfunding campaign in Europe. The round is led by Thairm Bio alongside support from Scottish Enterprise and a number of other high-profile angel investors.

The new investment will support the scaling of Phlo’s operations and its partnerships with healthcare providers, ultimately enabling more clinicians and patients to access the benefits of digitised pharmacy services.

Kerry Sharp, director of entrepreneurship and investment at Scottish Enterprise, added: “Phlo is a fantastic example of a growing innovative company that is helping patients and healthcare providers through its technology. With Scottish Enterprise investment, the company can scale up operations and expand its services into new markets.”

Founded by entrepreneur Nadeem Sarwar and headquartered in Glasgow, Scotland, Phlo claims to be “at the forefront” of innovation and product development in the UK pharmacy sector. Its team headcount has just exceeded 70 people.

Nadeem Sarwar, founder and CEO of Phlo, added: “I would like to thank our existing and new investors for supporting Phlo’s mission as we enter into our next stage of growth.

“The investment raised will help support our expansion across the UK and allow us to continue developing our Phlo Digital Pharmacy and Phlo Connect offering to improve healthcare outcomes.

“This round of investment is particularly crucial in helping us scale our offering and realising our vision of establishing Phlo as the market leader in the delivery of next-generation digital pharmacy services right across the UK. We have a very busy roadmap ahead and some incredibly exciting opportunities to take advantage of in 2023 and beyond”.

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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