Nottingham, 2014-9-22— /EPR Retail News/ — Alliance Boots today has published its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report 2013/14 for the year ended 31 March 2014.
The Group’s expanding global footprint provides opportunities to further its contribution towards a sustainable future. Working within the healthcare industry, Alliance Boots is in a privileged position to help improve the healthcare available to communities around the world by providing medicines, quality products and services, as well as expert advice to people every day.
CSR forms an integral part of Alliance Boots commercial philosophy and is at the heart of its efforts to serve communities with care and commitment. The Group recognises the importance of working in partnership and championing worthwhile causes, such as the fight against cancer. During the year, it has continued to support charitable partnerships, including the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Charitable Trust and Macmillan Cancer Support in the UK, through a wide variety of fundraising activities and volunteering initiatives.
Alliance Boots understands the value that can be created through collaboration between academia and industry, and continues to work with highly regarded academic institutions. Such collaborations help to better inform its business activities, as well as generate benefits within the health and beauty industry for customers and patients.
Ornella Barra, Chairman of the social responsibilities committee, Alliance Boots, comments: “With an increasing presence across many communities around the world, we continue to recognise the importance of ensuring that our business practices are socially, environmentally and economically sustainable across the Group. Working in close partnership with our many stakeholders and inspiring our teams within the field of CSR has enabled us to succeed in becoming a leader within the responsibility agenda.”
As in previous years, this report includes an independent assurance report on the Group’s 2013/14 CSR data, issued by KPMG, which reinforces its established processes and procedures in relation to data capture and accuracy.
The report can be accessed online here: Alliance Boots CSR Report 2013/14
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Notes to editors:
About Alliance Boots
Alliance Boots is a leading international pharmacy-led health and beauty group delivering a range of products and services to customers. Working in close partnership with manufacturers and pharmacists, we are committed to improving health in the local communities we serve and helping our customers and patients to look and feel their best. Our focus is on growing our two core business activities of: pharmacy-led health and beauty retailing and pharmaceutical wholesaling and distribution, while increasingly developing and internationalising our product brands.
Alliance Boots has a presence in more than 27* countries and employs over 120,000* people. We have pharmacy-led health and beauty retail businesses in 11* countries and operate more than 4,600* health and beauty retail stores, of which more than 4,450* have a pharmacy, with a fast growing online presence. In addition, Alliance Boots has around 600* optical practices, of which around 180* operate on a franchise basis, and hearingcare services in around 430* locations. Our pharmaceutical wholesale businesses deliver over 4.5* billion units each year to more than 180,000* pharmacies, doctors, health centres and hospitals from over 370* distribution centres in 20* countries.
In June 2012, Alliance Boots announced that it had entered into a strategic partnership with Walgreen Co. (Walgreens), the largest drugstore chain in the US. In August 2014, Alliance Boots and Walgreens communicated that they plan to merge in the first quarter of calendar 2015 to create the first global pharmacy-led, health and wellbeing enterprise, which will be named Walgreens Boots Alliance.
* Figures are approximations as at 31 March 2014, with the addition of Farmacias Ahumada data at the date of its acquisition on 11 August 2014, and include associates and joint ventures.
For further information, please contact:
Media relations:
Laura Vergani/Katie Johnson, Alliance Boots: +44 (0)207 980 8585
Claire Scicluna, RLM Finsbury: +44 (0)207 251 3801
Investor relations:
Gerald Gradwell, Alliance Boots: +44 (0)207 980 8527 (UK)/+1 646 688 1336 (US)