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Every day, Shoppers Drug Mart helps millions of Canadians who come to us for help with their health and wellbeing. Whether it’s in one of our 1,800 retail pharmacies, on our PC Health app, or through services such as MediSystem and the Specialty Health Network by Shoppers, Shoppers Drug Mart has worked hard to be the local pharmacy Canadians can always count on.

60 years of helping Canadians live life well – and we’re just getting started 

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Moses stands wearing his lab coat behind the pharmacy counter.   

Moses Ojemakinde

Diversity and inclusion

When Moses Ojemakinde immigrated to Canada in 2006, he thought he would continue working as a pharmacist—after all, he had a 23-year career in the profession in Nigeria.  

People

How Moses became a pharmacist in Canada

How the pandemic deepened Canada’s relationship with pharmacists  

Ruchi stands in front of the pharmacy at a Shoppers Drug Mart location. 

Ruchi Kumar

A Q&A with Ruchi Kumar, Senior Director of Pharmacy Services at Shoppers Drug Mart® stores 

Products and services

Paul stands inside his store smiling in front of a colourful wall. 

Paul Bazin

Community

Between raising three small children, coaching sports teams, and running a Shoppers Drug Mart® store, Associate-owner Paul Bazin is a busy man. But despite this, he always makes time for his community. 

Paul’s big impact in a small city 

A professional photo of Shirley smiling and holding one of her lipsticks.  

Shirley Ibe 

When Shirley Ibe first saw her products listed on the Shoppers Drug Mart® website, she almost couldn’t believe it was finally happening. “In the lead-up to launch day, I was so focused on getting everything done and making sure I was meeting all the requirements, that when we actually launched, I almost had a hard time believing it was real life!” she says. “It just felt so surreal. But eventually, I was like, ‘Oh my god, this is the moment you've been waiting for.’” 

Shirley’s dream comes true  

Tina and Linda embrace in front of the self-checkout machines inside their Shoppers Drug Mart location. 

Tina Yeomans

At a Shoppers Drug Mart® in Ottawa, Tina Yeomans and her co-workers are like family. Many have worked there since the store opened five years ago, and together, they celebrate birthdays, go out for dinner, have game nights, and go bowling.  

Tina’s gift saves a life  

James stands inside the fill site holding a large bottle filled with tablets.

James Eaman

There’s a plastic-saving campaign going on behind the scenes at your local Shoppers Drug Mart® pharmacy. Or, more accurately, at the central fill sites used by high-volume stores to fill prescriptions.

James helps reduce plastic waste 

Nadine stands inside her store with her hands on a pair of sneakers

Nadine Abou-Kheir 

They called him Mr. Dior, Nadine Abou-Kheir recalls fondly. “Whenever we look over at the make-up counter, we remember Martin; the brushes were his brushes.” In 2020, at the start of the pandemic, Martin, an employee at Nadine’s store, tragically took his own life. Nadine, Associate-owner at a Calgary Shoppers Drug Mart®, and her employees were understandably in shock.  

Nadine’s team is running for Martin 

Misty stands behind the pharmacy counter inside her store.

Misty Kolbuck 

Misty Kolbuck was looking for a change. So when the associate owner of the Shoppers Drug Mart® in Selkirk, MB where she was working as a front cash supervisor asked if she was interested in a role as a pharmacy assistant, Misty leapt at the chance.  

Misty hits the ground running 

Sherida stands inside her Shoppers Drug Mart store 

Sherida Edwards

I’ve been obsessed with beauty since I was little. My mom worked in cosmetics and skincare and was always glammed up, always had her hair and nails done. I wasn’t allowed to touch any of her products, so when I got home from school, I’d put them all over my face and then wash them off before she got home.   

Sherida reflects on race and the beauty industry 

Rebekah stands in front of a “The Health Clinic by Shoppers” sign. 

Rebekah Menezes

Rebekah Menezes knew in high school that she wanted to be a nurse. Her mom, a nurse for 35 years, would always come home telling stories about her day and talking about how she loved the job. For the last five years, since Rebekah graduated as a Registered Practical Nurse (RPN), she’s worked at Kendalwood Clinic in Whitby, Ont.

Rebekah, meet the Health Clinic by Shoppers

Medical cannabis sits on a metal tray and in a glass jar with prescription bottles in the background

Medical cannabis in bottle

In pharmacy school, Aarti Patel didn’t learn much about medical cannabis. So when she started working for the Medical Cannabis by Shoppers™ team, she faced a steep learning curve and dove into in-depth training on how it can benefit patients.

Navigating the world of medical cannabis

Read the story 

Katie stands in front of a wall wearing her pharmacy lab coat 

Katie Trees

You could say that Katie Trees fell into the pharmacy profession. When she was in high school, a pharmacist from her local Shoppers Drug Mart® store in Port Alberni, British Columbia, approached her school’s career counsellor to ask if there were any science students who might want to work as a pharmacy assistant. They suggested Katie, now 30, might be a good fit. “I knew I wanted a career in healthcare but I had no idea what pharmacy was or what I’d be doing.”

Katie is a pharmacist in training

Rayelyn holds a tablet while she stands in front of a display desk at a Shoppers Drug Mart

Rayelyn Izzo

Rayelyn Izzo, a Beauty Specialist at a Shoppers Drug Mart® store in Calgary, AB has been waiting for the Beauty NOW™ platform for years. “The old system was archaic,” she says. “We’d have to wait and wait and we really need to be able to communicate with our clients on a faster technology platform. It’s beauty at our fingertips.”

Beauty at your fingertips

The back of a young girl walking forward carrying a school bag

Period poverty - girl with school bag

Socks. Old t-shirts. Fabric scraps. These are all items that some Canadians have said they’ve used as alternatives to pads or tampons when faced with the impossible choice between buying a period product or an essential item on their grocery list. It’s a situation known as “period poverty.”   

Period Poverty: Helping girls in need

An unidentifiable woman wearing a face mask gets a shot in her left arm 

Woman getting vaccinated in left arm

As many parts of Canada battle a fourth wave of COVID-19, it’s important that we do everything we can to protect ourselves and our most vulnerable – and that means getting your flu shot AND the COVID-19 vaccine. The two-combined give you your best shot at a safer fall and winter.

The flu shot is your best shot at a safer fall and winter

Emily smiles as she stands outside on the grass holding laptops in her hands

Emily McCreery

Seventeen-year-old Emily McCreery knows the challenge many students faced when schools shut down due to COVID-19 and classes moved online. “It was hard to do schoolwork via Zoom,” says the Regina, SK resident, who is entering grade 12 this fall and works part-time as a cashier at Shoppers Drug Mart®. But Emily realized that for students who don’t have access to reliable technology at home, in particular laptops, it was even harder. 

Emily helps get students online

Bryce stands in front of the pharmacy counter at Shoppers Drug Mart smiling

Bryce Barry

Pharmacists save lives – just ask Bryce Barry, a pharmacist at Shoppers Drug Mart® in Park Place Mall in Lethbridge, Alta. In May, a one-year-old boy was in his Lethbridge backyard with his mother when he ate some raccoon feces out of a flowerpot. His parents did some online research and learned raccoon poop often contains a roundworm that can cause neurological disease or death. Drug intervention within 72 hours is critical. 

The tale of Bryce, a toddler and a raccoon

Man with baby on shoulders standing next to woman and toddler

Pascal Niccoli

Last summer, Pascal Niccoli, Associate at a Shoppers Drug Mart® location in Waterloo, Ont., started noticing a concerning shift among his customers, patients and store team: anxiety and stress were on the rise, mental wellbeing was declining, and he was seeing a sharp increase in demand for medications to treat anxiety, depression and other psychiatric disorders. So, Pascal started a conversation that has since snowballed into a half-million-dollar donation to the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA). 

Putting our money where mental health is

Catherine and Kyle standing underneath cherry blossom trees

Catherine and Kyle

When Catherine Nolin attended safe-space training run by Laurentian University a couple of years ago, there was one big takeaway for her: “We can make little changes in the way we practice our everyday habits and these changes can have a big impact on someone’s life.”

Catherine and Kyle keep the LGBTQ2SIA+ community safe

Woman with hands in pockets, standing in front of pharmacy counter 

Ghada Gabr

Earlier this month, a customer came in to see long-time pharmacist Ghada Gabr, who’s also associate owner of three Shoppers Drug Mart® locations in Halifax. His vision was blurry, he noticed he was thirsty all the time, and he was urinating way more than usual. He knew something was wrong, but he didn’t have a family doctor and wasn’t sure what to do. Luckily, Ghada did. 

Ghada tackles diabetes 

Smiling mother and teenage daughter standing in their neighbourhood street 

Christa Wasko and daughter

When her 13-year-old daughter, Nafisa, started spending more time in her room, sleeping more, and coming home from school exhausted, Pharmacy Operations Specialist Christa Wasko put it down to two normal causes: being a typical teenager, and pandemic fatigue. All of that changed this past winter when, what began as a stomachache one morning, turned into a month-long absence from school. 

Christa sees the subtle signs of mental illness 

Michelle Beard

When Michelle Beard moved from Toronto to Winnipeg to take on the role of District Manager, Operations at Shoppers Drug Mart, she didn’t want to leave her volunteer work on behalf of Run for Women behind — she wanted to build on it. 

Michelle builds up support for a good cause 

Pharmacist administering vaccine to older person

Alberta pharmacist update on COVID vaccinations

Canadians are beginning to see the light at the end of this year-long pandemic tunnel. And Shivali Sharma and Brian Jones, both pharmacist/owners of Shoppers Drug Mart® stores in Alberta — the first province to allow pharmacies to administer the vaccine — want to assure everyone that the COVID vaccine has been approved by Health Canada and is safe. 

Pharmacists say COVID vaccinations are going smoothly 

Smiling man sitting at desk, pen in left hand, paper and clipboard on desk

Ian Stewart

Ian Stewart, Associate Owner of a Shoppers Drug Mart® store in Toronto, wants to increase the representation of Black students in pharmacy — and is getting a little help from Shoppers Drug Mart to do just that. 

Ian and Shoppers Drug Mart double down to support Black pharmacy students 

Heba Salama

“Stop complaining.” “You’re just weak.” “Why are you so negative?” “Are you crazy?” “You need to toughen up.” These are all things Shoppers Drug Mart™  Associate Owner Heba Salama was afraid of hearing if she spoke up about how she was feeling.  

Heba isn’t always OK — and that’s OK 

Smiling woman seated near windows with closed blinds 

Terri Anne Gibson

Terri Anne Gibson, Pharmacist at a Shoppers Drug Mart® location in Chilliwack, B.C., has always had a passion to help others. But The Shoebox Project for Women, which collects and distributes gift-filled boxes to women in shelters across Canada, means so much to her — for different, more personal reasons.  

Terri Anne thinks outside the (Shoe)box 

PC Health app 

Focusing on one’s health and wellness is a popular theme at the best of times. And many would agree it's a goal that takes on new importance in 2020. Now, Canadians in Atlantic Canada have a new tool to help them on their health and wellness journey: The PC Health app.  

The PC® brand just got Health(ier) 

A Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacist wearing a mask, face shield and gloves 

flu shot 2020

“The flu shot really isn't just about protecting yourself; it’s about protecting our communities’ most vulnerable,” says Bhavika Lad, director of preventative care for the Shoppers Drug Mart® brand. This year, in the wake of COVID-19, getting the flu vaccine is more important than ever.  

Flu shot, why not? 

A healthcare worker holds a COVID-19 test vial. 

COVID test vial 

In June, Alberta joined other governments around the world who are expanding testing to people without symptoms to more clearly map how COVID-19 spreads. And now there’s a new place for Albertans without symptoms to get tested: Shoppers Drug Mart® and Loblaw pharmacies. 

Shoppers Drug Mart® and Loblaw pharmacies begin COVID testing 

A headshot of John Rankin smiling at the camera

John Rankin

Fact: one in eight women will develop depression at some point in their lifetime; this is twice as likely as men. If that stat isn’t shocking enough, layer on a global pandemic and it’s easy to understand why people like  John Rankin, Associate Owner of a Shoppers Drug Mart® store in London, Ontario are committed to raising funds for the LOVE YOU by Shoppers Drug Mart™ program, which works together with local charities to help advance women’s health and provide support systems for women to feel their best.  

Supporting mothers, daughters and friends 

Two Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacists, a man and a woman, facing the camera 

Abed and Tanya

This summer, Abed Mitha, Pharmacy Manager at the Loblaws® store located at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, helped save a life. It was a regular day in June. Abed was at work behind the pharmacy counter when a bystander rushed into the store looking for him. The bystander told Abed that a woman had overdosed and passed out across the street.  

How our pharmacies can play a critical role in helping save lives

Illustration of various women in profile 

Period Poverty 

Socks. Old t-shirts. Fabric scraps. These are all items that 14% of Canadian women surveyed say they’ve used as alternatives to pads or tampons when faced with the impossible choice between buying a period product or an essential item on their grocery list. It’s a situation known as “period poverty.”  