Profile of a Visionaire

Bukky George; The Queen of Nigerian Retail

Bukky George, the brains behind the ubiquitous HealthPlus Pharmacy retail chain succeeded despite dire situations. Coming from a polygamous family with 36 children, her mother; a matron at a medical school had to fend for her own kids.

Bukky George has done the unthinkable, launching her retail chain just four years out of school. Unbelievably, she is grateful for her poor background and cites it as the driving factor for her success.

She learnt to let go of the anger of always being needy and trust people more after she gave her life to Christ on campus. She started her career working for May & Baker and then SmithKline Beecham. The name – HealthPlus; came to her in a vision. She then educated and empowered herself with mentors and organizations like “Awesome Treasures” and “Women in Business Management & Public Life” - WIMBIZ.

Her story isn’t complete without the “God factor”. Immediately she got the vision, she deployed business principles like;​

• Getting a good location,

• Raising funding,

• Learning about the retail aspect of the pharmaceutical business

In an industry where professionals are persistently threatened by quacks, especially in the developing world, Bukky George sought exposure by travelling to the UK and working in London’s landmark pharmacy - John Bell and Croyden. The experience was quite enlightening.

It made her desire to be different from the average community pharmacy in Nigeria.

“A particular customer once asked me why one of my drugs was N250 when a nearby chemist was selling for N200. I explained to him that I’m a professional who gives counsel during sales, without charging for consultation”.

Another way she has differentiated herself is through proper customer service and adequate training, making sure her facts were up to date.

“I have an addiction, which is reading consistently. All these account for our growth and expansion. As a matter of fact, by the first quarter of 2014, we will have 35 outlets. Our target is 100 stores by 2020”.

Human resource has been her main challenge.

“I believe that if you have a fantastic idea, money will follow you. Unfortunately, our education has gone to the dogs. It’s so difficult getting good staff. We have a problem with values; people don’t have integrity, but want to make money quickly without paying their dues. I therefore have to deal always with shrinkage, pilfering, laxity, bad attitudes, to mention a few, which makes one want to give up on the vision sometimes”.

Another skill that has aided Bukky on her path to success is being methodical and paying attention to details. “Retail is detail”.

Culled from: dailyindependentnig.com

Review

Dubbed the Queen of retail in Nigeria, and the first recipient of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria Board of Fellows’ Award for Excellence in Community Pharmacy, BiznextAfrica has highlighted below, four keys to Bukky George’s pioneer status.

• Poverty drove me to achieving success: Her situation became a propelling force. She never gave up. Failure wasn’t an option.

• Filling a gap: the lack of reputable pharmaceutical retail stores in the country.

• Her Faith: Believing in God, in herself and the vision he gave her enough to run with it.

• Professionalism: Differentiating herself from others, learning all the time, exposing herself to professional and contemporary practices abroad.

Bukky George is soon to be a globally known brand owner and trail blazer.