Overview
- Assaí opened its first Assaí Farma inside the Anhanguera store in São Paulo, with operations starting on Thursday, July 16, 2026, and will sell items in-store and online using click-and-collect at launch.
- The new pharmacy carries about 10,000 SKUs and will immediately sell products such as weight-loss pens alongside pharmacy services.
- Management intends to open roughly 25 in-store pharmacies by the end of 2026 and says the concept could be rolled out to more than 250 sites across its network if the trial proves successful.
- Assaí plans to compete with established drugstore chains by diluting fixed costs already borne by supermarkets and by negotiating directly with manufacturers to improve margins and prices.
- Company executives warn of operational challenges including lower buying scale for some medicines and security risks for high-value items, and they say they will evaluate wider expansion and the option of standalone street pharmacies based on early results.