Galenica strengthens basic care with new pharmacy concept

Press release

• Pharmacies play a key role in healthcare. 
• Galenica is testing a new pharmacy concept with a focus on consultations and customer experience at the Amavita pharmacy in Zurich’s Glattzentrum. 
• In doing so, Galenica is responding to changing customer needs and demonstrating what pharmacies might look like in the future.

Around 1,830 public pharmacies ensure nationwide basic care in Switzerland – more than 300,000 people visit a pharmacy every day. In addition to dispensing medicines, pharmacies increasingly offer services such as vaccinations, health checks and advice for acute complaints. Demographic change and the strained medical supply situation mean that demand for these local easily accessible services continues to grow.

Galenica develops new pharmacy concept

To strengthen the role of pharmacies as a central point of contact for health issues, Galenica is working on new care models and the customer experience in pharmacies. A modernised Amavita pharmacy will open in Zurich’s Glattzentrum on 25 October 2025. It will serve as a pilot for a new pharmacy concept that more closely links consultation, store design and digital support. With the launch, Galenica is fundamentally redesigning the customer experience and showing what pharmacies can look like in the future.

The redesigned pharmacy offers express checkouts for quick shopping, fully private rooms for discreet consultations and new semi-private consultation areas. Here, specialists and customers can compare and discuss products and services together on screens. In doing so, Galenica is also responding to changing customer needs: Today, around 80% of customers first obtain information online before visiting a pharmacy. Galenica has been making targeted investments in connecting digital and in-store offerings for several years. The new pharmacy concept is a key component of this strategy.

“As Switzerland’s strongest healthcare network, we want to participate in shaping the role of pharmacies in health and care. To this end, we are investing specifically in modern space concepts, digitalisation, new offers and the further development of employees’ skills,” says Marc Werner, CEO of Galenica.

Further pharmacies based on the new concept planned for 2026

With “Consultation plus,” pharmacies in the Galenica network already offer an easily accessible advisory service, for example for acute concerns such as bladder problems or skin problems as well as preventive health checks such as HerzCheck^®. Depending on cantonal regulations, Amavita and Sun Store pharmacies also offer different vaccinations. With the “Cost containment package 2,” the federal government is also underlining the competencies of the pharmacy.
From 2027, pharmacy services such as vaccinations as well as measures for prevention and adherence to therapy will be covered by basic health insurance. The new pharmacy concept is helping to further expand consultations as a central task of the pharmacy.

The pharmacy in Glattzentrum is a pilot project that will be implemented with existing staff. Galenica gains insights into customer behaviour, processes and training needs, which are incorporated directly into the further development of the pharmacies. Additional pilot pharmacies are planned for 2026 – as the next step towards broader implementation at other locations.

Dates for the diary

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Welcome to the Galenica network!
Around 8,000 employees at Galenica work tirelessly to improve the health and well-being of the people of Switzerland every day. With its pharmacies, pharmaceutical logistics providers, products, services and home care, Galenica has a broad and successful position in the market. We are shaping the future of healthcare in collaboration with our strong partners – by drawing on the diverse skills and extensive expertise of our entire network. Our ambition is to fulfil the needs of customers and patients in the Swiss healthcare market seamlessly, efficiently and personally.

Galenica is listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange (SIX Swiss Exchange, GALE, security number 36,067,446). Find out more about Galenica at www.galenica.com.