Ankur Pipaliya and Stephanie Dean feel nothing but excitement as they soon open a new pharmacy in Fort St. James.
After countless hours of reflooring, repainting and more at the former CIBC Branch on Burrard Street, Stuart Lake Pharmacy held its grand opening on Monday, Jan. 17.
The business partners are both from Vanderhoof where they have worked together.
Pipaliya is a pharmacist and Dean is a pharmacy technician.
“Once I had moved to Vanderhoof, I realized the perks of living a small town, a small community,” Pipaliya said, noting he had lived in Toronto for a few years before moving to Calgary, where he had worked at a hospital.
“You can develop relationships quickly, and particularly when it comes to working in a pharmacy—you can have a really good relationship with the business and people in the community.”
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Dean said both she and Pipaliya have a passion for striving to provide excellent service to everyone and making them feel welcome.
They began talking about opening a pharmacy in Fort St. James early last year.
“We just love helping people, so we thought we’d like to break off onto our own and try it ourselves and see how it goes, and we are super excited for it,” Dean said.
Aside from pharmacy services, including free delivery service for people who may have difficulty getting out of their home or feel unsafe leaving due to COVID-19, Stuart Lake Pharmacy will also offer health, beauty, and food products.
The pharmacy is operating five days a week, Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Additional staff, including another pharmacist, may be hired shortly.
The pharmacy will be the second drugstore operating in Fort St. James.
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