Amcal
 | |
| Industry | Pharmacy retailer |
|---|---|
| Founder | Major General C. H. Simpson |
Area served | Australia |
| Owner | Sigma Pharmaceuticals Limited |
| Website | http://www.amcal.com.au/ |
Allied Master Chemists of Australia Limited (Amcal) was founded by Major General C. H. Simpson on 13 July 1937, starting a movement that was to greatly influence pharmacy in Australia.[1] The founding group consisted of 11 pharmacists.
The launch of Amcal to consumers was included personal letters to each household, window posters, a giveaway of a tablet of soap and a brochure entitled "Why this is an Amcal Pharmacy".
Australia
Originally Amcal was a buying group owned by the members who all had shares in the Amcal group. Sigma bought out the members shares in 2000 with the lure of more money and better centralised marketing. It is still a marketing group, however a franchise division of Amcal called Amcal Max is now marketing under a more competitive and complient model. In Australia, Amcal is operated by Sigma Pharmaceuticals Limited.
New Zealand
In New Zealand, Amcal was a pharmacy franchise. Amcal's marketing was managed by the owner of Amcal New Zealand, Pharmacybrands, a division of Australian Pharmaceutical Industries. The chain was rebranded as Unichem in 2015.