My Job: Meaghers CEO Oonagh O’Hagan on prescriptions, wellness and rejections from the banks

From a traditional shop-floor service to a wellness destination: How Meaghers Pharmacy reinvented itself over 25 years.

Oonagh O'Hagan, owner & CEO of Meaghers Pharmacy Group.  Picture: Chris Bellew / Fennell Photography

• Name: Oonagh O’Hagan
• Occupation: Owner & CEO, Meaghers Pharmacy Group
• Background: Established in 2001, the Group now operates 10 stores

In the midst of the spectacular horticultural offerings at last weekend’s Bord Bia Bloom festival, Meaghers Pharmacy Group has opened a dedicated 360° Wellness Village as part of the company’s celebrations marking 25 years in business. 

“Meaghers has been rooted in wellness for twenty-five years - supporting people not just when they are unwell, but in staying well every day,” says Oonagh O’Hagan. 

The business was first established on Dublin’s Baggot Street by the Meagher family in 1921. O’Hagan purchased the firm from the family in 2001 and has since opened another nine stores across Dublin. In 2014, the business went online and now provides customer service worldwide, shipping to over 80 countries internationally. The firm has been named a Deloitte Best Managed company every year since 2014, and included as one of Ireland’s Best Workplaces since 2020.

“I bought Meaghers on Baggot Street at the tender age of 28 for £2m punts at the time,” O’Hagan recalled of those first fledgling steps. “I look back now and think how could I have been so brave and why wasn’t I crippled with fear at the responsibility - but I knew in my gut that I could make it work, I just didn’t quite know how at that point in time.” Predictably, getting a loan was difficult, and she received a number of ‘no’ responses before eventually getting the go-ahead from AIB. 

“I wasn’t prepared for some of the questions that were put to me in the first meetings, but I asked them why they had rejected me and took those learnings and feedback to help me prepare for the next meeting.” Preparation and knowing your numbers are key, she says: “That experience of the initial rejections built an understanding of what they were looking for and gave me the confidence on how I should answer. I always say: reject rejection. It’s not like you’ve failed, it’s just a learning and is part of the journey to getting a ‘yes’ eventually. People should expect rejection and not be put off by it. My message is not to give up - if you have a dream, keep going for it.”

A quarter century ago in 2001, pharmacy was still a largely traditional business, operating the same way for decades. “Back then, pharmacies were very much about reactive care. There were no screenings; it was all about prescriptions and dealing with illnesses. There was no talk about wellness. People were coming into the pharmacy saying: ‘I’m sick, how do I get better’ - and not looking at how they could prevent illness."

"Back then, there were no private consultation rooms so you were having to talk to people on the shop floor – the whole operational side of the business was completely different. We have worked for many years now to reposition Meaghers as a ‘Wellness destination’ and to move the conversation away from sickness and much more towards health. We are the pharmacy to come to if you want to stay well.” 

In the early 2000s, she remembers being the only female businessperson at commercial events was a common occurrence. “I didn’t feel different, but I certainly felt that I was the only woman in lots of business situations.” Her mother, Liza, who managed a large lingerie manufacturing plant in Tyrone was a strong role model. “I didn’t feel it was unusual to be a woman in business. However, when I started going to networking events, I was often the only woman in the room. It made me wonder, ‘where are all the women’ rather than question why I was there.” O’Hagan credits the experience for volunteering as a Lead Entrepreneur on the Going for Growth programme for female entrepreneurs, supporting more women to grow and scale their businesses in Ireland.

The Meaghers Group have been fostering wellness since 2014 when a strategic change was enacted to move the conversation from sickness to wellness. “We began stocking high-quality brands — such as Symprove for gut health and have recently launched At One, a premium supplement containing a blend of anti-inflammatory ingredients to help bring your body back into balance. We want to ensure our customers had access to the best preventative products and wellness services.” 

In 2024, the firm introduced Meaghers Pharmacy 360°, an integrative health approach bringing together elements of lifestyle medicine - nutrition, movement, sleep, stress management and connection to support the physical and mental wellbeing. “The real magic happens when you introduce Pharmacy 360° alongside a chronic illness,” she explains. “Which is why we’ve brought the 360° Wellness Village to Bord Bia Bloom - educating, inspiring and empowering visitors to live healthier, happier lives.” 

Given the ongoing shortage of GPs and medical waiting lists, pharmacies are well placed to bring their expertise in significantly easing the pressure on health services. “Pharmacists are highly-trained and are the most accessible and most-visited healthcare professionals working in every community. We are the most trusted and often the first port of call open five to seven days a week.” The profession’s role and skills are being recognised at a policy level with the introduction of the Common Conditions Service (CCS), which allows pharmacists to treat common ailments such as non-complicated UTIs, cold sores, conjunctivitis and shingles. “These are ailments we see every day and used to have to refer back to the GP despite knowing what the patient needed. This is improving the cost to the patient and cutting down the time it takes to get treated. We would hope that this expansion of our role continues, where we can treat many more conditions in the future.”

O’Hagan does anticipate opening more physical stores, but only when the right opportunity presents itself. “We have grown from one physical store to 10 and we are always looking to expand further. While growth mainly has been in Dublin - and we do see more opportunity in Dublin - we are also open to moving outside the capital, if the right opportunity comes up. Whenever we move into a new community, we are strategic and want to ensure that we bring a new approach to healthcare within that community.” The firm’s online offering allows a greater scope of expansion outside Ireland. 

"Online has enabled us to enter new markets without a physical store to offer high-quality supplements, skin care and beauty products. Some of our most loyal customers are from Cork, Galway and Clare.” 

Meaghers ships to 80 countries worldwide and maintains a focus on bringing high-quality Irish products to new markets. “We are always expanding online – adding new brands and services. It has also allowed us to launch digital health care services collaborating with a range of other healthcare providers and we see great scope for that in the future.” There are significant career opportunities within the sector - not just for pharmacists, but also in purchasing, supply chain, marketing, e-commerce, HR and finance. “Healthcare is also embracing AI, which will lead to new roles in pharmacy that we have not even thought about yet.”