Doors open at Harrowsmith Pharmasave

Nov 27, 2019

It seemed like it was a pretty quick transition when a Pharmasave sign went up in the former location of a convenience and a bakery in Harrowsmith about a month ago. Two weeks later, the Harrowsmith Pharmasave, owned and managed by Bhavin Patel, opened its doors.

It wasn’t that quick for Patel himself, however.

“I had the property in the summer and hoped to have the store open in September, but there were construction delays and we ended up opening at the beginning of November. I am happy with the way the store looks. Everything is clean and we have all of the space we need to serve the public,” he said.

The wait for Bhavin Patel to open his own pharmacy has been quite a bit longer than a month or two. He emigrated to Canada, from India. After receiving bachelors and masters degrees in the field, he had to re-do his qualifications in Canada. He has worked in Winnipeg, Regina and other locations in the Prairies as well as Scarborough, always hoping to get an opportunity to open his own pharmacy and take control of his own business.

He lives in Kingston now with his wife, a trained engineer, and two children (one of whom is less than two months old) and he was looking for a good location for a pharmacy. Harrowsmith is a good choice because the local community has no pharmacy and the location he found is right on Road 38 near the stop light in town.

So far, he has found that the local community has been very receptive and he has been quick to respond when customers are looking for products that he doesn’t yet have available.

“We have most of the bases covered as far as over the counter medication, supplements, skin and hair care are concerned, but we have room for more in order to help people get what they need in town to avoid having to drive somewhere. I tell people who come in to tell me if they are looking for something that is not here, and if I can I order it in for them and the next customer,” he said.

He is, of course, also able to handle prescription needs for his customers, but knows it will take time for people to switch from their current pharmacy to a new one, even if they live close by.

“If people want to bring their prescriptions to me that is great, obviously, but it has to be something they are comfortable with. I am here to serve the community.”

As a token, Bhavin hands out a re-usable Pharmasave bag with a few products in it to first time customers.

The Pharmacy is open 7 days a week (9am-6pm Mon-Fri / 10am-3pm Sat / 10-2pm Sun)

A grand opening is planned for Friday, December 13th, starting at 11:30am.