Pharmacy chain CarePlus it to create 70 new jobs with the opening of 12 new outlets.
The new pharmacies will open in Dublin, Kerry, Cork and Tipperary in the coming months. Each store is undergoing significant investment , the company said.
The announcement will bring the number of CarePlus pharmacies across the Republic to 51. The company has aggressive growth plans to reach 150 pharmacies across the State by 2020.
CarePlus also said it was in “advanced negotiations” with a number of national pharmacy operators, with “significant new partnerships” expected to be announced early next year.
CarePlus commercial director Niamh Lynch had recently invested €5 million in new technology, including drug dispensing robots, digital shelf-edge display labels and interactive customer screens.
Furthermore, the CarePlus app allows customers to send their prescription to the pharmacy before leaving the doctor’s surgery, thereby cutting the in-store wait time.
“The CarePlus model enables community pharmacists to offer a better level of customer service, in what is becoming an increasingly competitive marketplace,” added Ms Lynch.