McCrystal’s celebrate 20 years in business

McCrystal’s StayWell Pharmacy in Cootehill is celebrating 20 years in business next week with lots of in-store offers, discounts on services and fun-filled activities for all the children to enjoy.

The business is owned and run by Lisnaskea native Conor McCrystal who has been living in Virginia for over 20 years after establishing himself there in 2003 when the McCrystal family took over Arnold’s Pharmacy in the town. The business in Virginia is located beside Skelly’s Costcutter and trades as McCrystal’s Staywell Pharmacy, Virginia. Meanwhile, in 2004, the McCrystals took over the pharmacy in Cootehill - previously known as Howlin’s Pharmacy. That business had been successfully run by James Howlin and the Brown family for many years.

Since 2004, the Cootehill premises has expanded through the purchase of the unit next door. In the intervening years, the business has evolved to meet the growing needs of its customer base and became part of the StayWell franchise in 2020.

Structural works have been carried out on the entire building in more recent times (carried out by Damien Galligan Construction) and it is right here that the 20th anniversary celebrations will take place during the last week of August 2024.

In 2019, the McCrystal family also took over Browne’s Pharmacy on Cootehill’s Market Street and that was subsequently rebranded as CarePlus Cootehill.

There are three McCrystals involved in the entire operation: Conor, his wife Clare McCrystal, Supervising Pharmacist at McCrystal’s StayWell Virginia; and Barry McCrystal, Supervising Pharmacist, CarePlus Cootehill.

Three pharmacists practise in McCrystal’s StayWell, Cootehill and the staff also include a number of qualified pharmacy technicians and front of pharmacy and beauty advisors, all led by Pharmacy Manager Frances Galligan.

Business in Cootehill

Conor has been involved with Cootehill’s Chamber of Commerce and is acutely aware of the changing landscape in the North-east Cavan town. He says Cootehill has maintained its status as a very busy market town, “ideally located between the counties of Cavan and Monaghan”.

“It’s a town that has pushed on over the last few years and there are people here very willing to push it on, and that is great,” continued Conor.

“If you look around the town you can see the development that is going on. Building has started on a welcome new 50 house development, upgrading of the Station Road is imminent and work on a major retail development is in the offing. Like other towns, Cootehill has had its challenges over the years, in particular the loss of the banks.”

When the McCrystals first started out here two decades ago, the three main banks in Ireland were located in Cootehill, now everyone locally is dependent on the excellent service offered by Cootehill Credit Union and the local post office. Conor says the town has moved on and there are lots of great things happening all around.

“There are a number of strong industrial employers in the town and there are plenty of jobs available here and the Main Street in Cootehill continues to do well,” he added.

Community Pharmacy

Pharmacy has changed over the years and there is a “big push” within the industry to extend the role of pharmacists.

“Obviously a lot of people see the gift and front of shop end of the business but pharmacists are trying to develop the professional side of the industry,” Conor highlighted.

“In 2010 pharmacists started vaccinating and administering flu vaccines and during the Covid-19 pandemic, pharmacies became one of the few businesses that remained open - pharmacists were under a lot of pressure to keep their businesses open and keep teams operating. The industry came through all of that and pharmacists became key to the Covid-19 vaccination effort, something that has continued to this day.”

This development helped the general public become accustomed to receiving jabs in pharmacies and, as a result, it has become commonplace.

“Many vaccines are now available in pharmacies including flu, Covid-19 and Shingles (all available without prescription).

“You can now have many injectables that you are prescribed administered in the pharmacy including Vitamin B12 as well as the more longer-term medications that people are on.”

Meanwhile, Conor is happy to point to just a couple of the new developments in the industry this year, which include the authority to extend prescriptions from six to 12 months from September 1, 2024, subject to professional judgement.

“The second development is the introduction of prescribing for pharmacists,” he continued.

“This would allow us to prescribe certain items allowing patients to access certain medicines directly from their pharmacy without the need for a GP visit. This would streamline healthcare provision during the busy winter season and improve accessibility for patients. The Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly is very supportive of this approach and work is ongoing to make this happen.”

Future

McCrystal’s Pharmacy has been in Cootehill for 20 years and Conor is eager to see the business progress.

“Pharmacy, like any progressive business, requires continual investment in the business to remain modern and up to date. The pharmacies here in Cootehill and in Virginia are now part of a franchise group - StayWell - and that was a big move for the business.

“For the first 10 years we were running independently and that’s a difficult thing to do because there are certain things that you can’t do by yourself and you need the expertise that comes with being part of a franchise. If you want to bring in new services, new ranges and develop your front of shop, you need external help to achieve all of that.”

He says that Cootehill is “well served” when it comes to health services with two modern GP practices, which play a big role in keeping people in the town.

“If people have to access GPs elsewhere or shop outside their local town, the money is spent there, not locally.”

20th anniversary celebrations

The celebrations kick off the week commencing August 26 with events and offers in store to mark the occasion. There will be discounts on the pharmacy’s health screening service all week affording everyone an opportunity to get their cholesterol (by appointment), blood pressure and blood sugars checked.

Starting on Monday August 26, there will be an in-store colouring competition for the youngsters of Cootehill. On Tuesday, August 27, ear piercing will be on offer at a reduced price of €30.

On Wednesday, August 28, McCrystal’s StayWell Pharmacy in Cootehill will afford patrons the opportunity to grab some early Christmas bargains with a special sale on selected items. Irish company, ULTRAPURE who provide products for muscle recovery will have representatives instore on Thursday, August 29, from 11am-3pm and the pharmacy will also have a special on its fake tan offerings.

On Friday, August 30, another Irish company, NaturaLife Health, will be in attendance from 10am-12pm. This company supplies Cleanmarine fish oils and is Ireland’s leading health supplement supplier. Friday also sees a customer appreciation day with refreshments for patrons and face painting for the kids. There will be a 10% discount on all fine fragrances as well as 20% off jewellery, gifts and candles.

Other Services

There are a number of services available on the StayWell website (www.staywell.ie) including emergency contraception, Men’s Health and Viagra Connect.

McCrystal’s StayWell also participates in the Safe Pharmacy initiative - set up by the Irish Pharmaceutical Union - to support people suffering from domestic abuse.

The pharmacy also offers a blister packaging service as an aid to medicine management.