Traditional look at historic family chemist

B Payne and Son, in Market Place, Wirksworth, has been in the Payne family for 80 years, however it was first established in 1756.

“We recognised that our flagship pharmacy needed a facelift and that it needed to reflect our traditional values,” said Nick Payne, managing director of B Payne and Son.

“We still had our fantastic, traditional drug run in storage and thought it was time that it was renovated and put on display and in everyday use again.

“We also had a number of other historic fittings from times past and these have also been reintroduced into our pharmacy. We wanted to achieve a great experience for our customers, both old and new. It has enabled us to introduce new services, such as our photo lab, which can handle not only all types of digital images, but also traditional 35mm film as well – one of the few places in Derbyshire where traditional film can be developed and printed.

“We are committed to helping our community stay fit and healthy and we provide services such as flu vaccinations, stop smoking services, regular support for people taking long-term medicines and providing extra support for those who are prescribed new medicines by their doctor.

“We look forward to welcoming patients both old and new to the coming months to come and experience our friendly service and beautiful new Pharmacy.”

The centre of the building is believed to date from the 1600s. The pharmacy is believed to have been owned by the Hall family in the 1700s. In the 1800s, it was taken over by the Hindle family.

The business was sold to Nick’s grandfather Benjamin Payne in 1930.