Evan Steed is a pharmacist and owner of the Spencerville Pharmasave which is in a small community about an hour south of Ottawa.
Where they’re working:
Evan Steed spent most of pharmacy school thinking he was going to be a hospital pharmacist. But one fateful co-op term with Scott Watson at Watson’s Pharmacy and Compounding Centre in Ottawa changed that.
“My last co-op with Scott completely changed how I saw community pharmacy,” Evan says. “He modelled how pharmacists can help their community. He delivered personalized, top-notch care to his patients and it made me do a 180 and say ‘wow, this is it, this is what I want to be.’”
Evan worked with Scott for about a year after graduation. But his wife Stephanie is from the Brockville area, and they knew they wanted to move back there to be closer to family and friends. Evan found a job with the Brockville Pharmasave where he worked for several years.
“But I had this itch – I liked working as a staff pharmacist, but I wanted to try different things. Eventually I sought out a few unique opportunities,” he says.
One was with RespectRx, a Pharmasave in the Ottawa region that specialized in addictions treatment, harm reduction and mental health. Another position was with the Royal Ottawa Hospital’s St. Lawrence Valley Secure Treatment Centre where Evan supported a treatment unit for people who are incarcerated in a provincial jail. They might have a mental health concern, a drug dependence issue or have committed a crime under the influence of drugs; Evan was responsible for intake appointments where he provided medication counselling and developed treatment plans.
“It was a bit of art meeting science working in that setting,” Evan says. “The work was highly clinical, requiring lots of extra study on my part. Sometimes guidelines suggested one thing, but a member of our interprofessional team like a psychiatrist with more experience than me, would recommend another. It was challenging but rewarding work.”
But throughout his journey, Evan had a goal in mind. Pharmacy ownership. His own store that offered top-notch service like he’d seen throughout his career.
“One day my wife and our son were on a drive through this small town of Spencerville. We saw an old RBC building sitting empty and I thought ‘well, that’s the perfect size for a pharmacy,” he says.
Spencerville was an ideal location. The township had no local pharmacy, and the nearest ones were either a fifteen-minute drive north our south.
“I don’t think there’s a perfect time to start a business,” he says. “It’s a huge undertaking full of challenges. But ultimately, with my wife’s support, I decided to go for it.”
With advice from fellow Rx2014 grads and mentors, Evan started the process. Pharmacist John Taylor was one of these mentors, and he joined Evan as partner on the business, providing guidance on the building purchase, store design, business plan, financing and more. Family was also instrumental in bringing the Spencerville Pharmacy to life. They pitched in with painting the store, long drives to pick up shelving and equipment, taking time off work to move furniture and hang signage and many of the other logistical tasks behind opening a business.
In February 2021, the Spencerville Pharmasave opened. The store is a jack-of-all-trades pharmacy, offering Level A compounding and all traditional dispensary services. Evan’s experiences also enabled him to offer harm reduction services and suboxone and methadone dispensing.
“This community is amazing,” he says. “They’re so supportive of any small business. We wondered if we’d be twiddling our thumbs waiting for prescriptions, but they embraced us right away. Things are going well, and we’re optimistic for the future. I’m so thankful, both to the community and to all the mentors, family and friends who’ve supported us along the way.”
Alumni Answers
UW: The Spencerville Pharmasave is an independent pharmacy with Pharmasave. What made you go that route?
ES: I knew I didn’t want any outside influence for my store, and I’d always had a great experience with Pharmasave. They offer so much support and buying power, but let you be completely independent as long as you have your patients’ best interests at heart.
UW: What advice do you have for alumni considering opening their own pharmacy?
ES: When you’re young and you graduate, you think you know everything and can do everything. But be patient. Wait for the right neighbourhood, the right collaboration or experience. Look for good mentors and lean on your peers. Make a plan – you can’t just put a sign out and open a pharmacy. Think about what will differentiate your offering and why a patient should want to leave a place they’ve been for years. Saving is important too – profits can take a while to come to fruition, and we had a nest egg and had been planning for years.
Non-Pharm Fun
“We’re a new business, so a lot of my day is spent at the pharmacy. But being a dad of two young boys is a full-time job on its own and I love it. You get home, hear them saying ‘daddy, daddy’ and pull them in for a hug – that’s amazing. I also make time to stay physically active – I find going to the gym helps me build some clarity – and we make sure to spend lots of family time down by the St. Lawrence River.”\
