Community pharmacy is a business that focuses on serving the population that surrounds it. It is important for any local business to understand the local needs it is aiming to fulfil. An independent car dealer based in a farming community is less likely to succeed by selling top of the range sports cars rather than offering vehicles more suitable for rural use.

It is also important to recognise that these local needs can easily change. Understanding how the local population changes, and how their needs will alter as a consequence, allows businesses to evolve and remain successful. Many small local retailers have doggedly continued to provide a traditional service based on what was done in the past while the local population has changed dramatically around them. These businesses will wither and eventually disappear.

Community pharmacy is no different from any other small businesses in this respect. Failing to take account of changes in the environment in which pharmacy operates will place increasing financial pressures on pharmacies, causing them to struggle to survive.