Stefano Pessina – CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance
Stefano Pessina is one of the most powerful and influential entrepreneurs in the world. He is the CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance – a retail pharmacy, health and wellbeing company – and is credited with making the company one of the world’s leading retail pharmacy and health care providers. Pessina has been able to leverage his success in international corporate management and retail pharmacy to make Walgreens Boots Alliance one of the most recognised brands in the world.
In this article, we will look at the remarkable career of Stefano Pessina, revealing how he got to where he is today and what makes him one of the leading entrepreneurs in the world.
Early Life and Education of Stefano Pessina
Stefano Pessina was born in 1943 in Kosovo, Italy. He comes from a family of pharmacists and worked at the family pharmacy business before graduating from the University of Naples Federico II in 1967 with a degree in nuclear engineering.
After his studies, Pessina moved back to his home town in Italy, working as an assistant to a manager of a pharmaceutical firm. After completing his initial studies, Pessina went on to work in Hyderabad and London, where he developed a keen eye for retail and business management.
Rise as an Entrepreneur
It was in Milan in 1977 that Pessina truly began his ascent as an entrepreneur. Here, he established Milan-based Alliance Sante, a chain of pharmacies and health-care centers. This was his first significant business venture and it allowed him to acquire experience in large-scale corporate finance, retail management and strategic planning.
By the mid-1990s, Pessina’s business acumen was becoming more well-known across the world, with Pessina’s name increasingly being linked with successful global business deals. He launched Alliance UniChem, a comprehensive pharmaceutical deal-making business. Thanks to Alliance UniChem, Pessina was able to secure discounted drug deals and distribution contracts with major pharmaceutical firms, resulting in the business becoming an international leader in price-compared pharmaceuticals.
Getting to the Top
Pessina’s big break came in 2007. That year, a merger of Alliance UniChem and Boots resulted in the formation of Alliance Boots, with Pessina as the company’s largest shareholder. The creation of Alliance Boots allowed Pessina to expand the company’s global reach and saw the firm become one of the world’s largest health and beauty providers.
In 2014, Pessina took Alliance Boots a step further, entering into a merger with the US-based retailer Walgreens, creating the company Walgreens Boots Alliance. This merger saw both Walgreens and Alliance Boots gain access to an international market with an estimated retail sales of more than $111 billion annually and gave Pessina the opportunity to establish himself as the CEO of one of the most powerful companies in the world.
Achievements of Stefano Pessina, CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance
Since becoming CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance, Pessina has achieved a great deal. As well as leading the company on a truly international scale, he has also been able to build business relationships with many of the industry’s leading players and has secured long-term deals and growth opportunities with the likes of Amazon, Nike and Reckitt Benckiser.
Pessina’s actions have also allowed Walgreens Boots Alliance to become one of the most recognised retail pharmacy brands in the world. The company’s US-brand Walgreens is the second largest pharmacy chain in the country, with the company’s international arm – Boots – accounting for one-third of the company’s annual sales.
The Challenges Faced by Stefano Pessina
Though Pessina has achieved a great deal since becoming CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance, he has not been immune from the pressures of running a large international business.
Perhaps the greatest challenge that Pessina has faced as CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance is the increasing competition posed by major tech firms and retail pharmacies in the health care and pharmaceuticals sector.
Pessina has not shied away from this challenge, however. He has used the company’s expertise in the health and retail pharmacy industry to secure more than 30 major deals with the likes of Microsoft, Novartis and Nestlé Health Sciences, allowing Walgreens Boots to stay ahead of the curve in terms of new technology and innovative medications.
The remarkable career of Stefano Pessina is testament to his business acumen, ambition and success as an entrepreneur. Starting out as a pharmacist in Italy in the 1970s, Pessina has since gone on to become the CEO of one of the world’s leading retail pharmacy and health care providers, thanks to his investment in international corporate management and retail pharmacy.
Pessina’s leadership has allowed Walgreens Boots Alliance to become a leading retail pharmacy and health care brand, with a presence in more than 25 countries and long-term deals with major tech firms and retail pharmacies.
As well as being an inspirational entrepreneur, Pessina is an important figure in the health care and pharmaceuticals sector. His ambition and expertise has allowed Walgreens Boots Alliance to stay ahead of the competition and become one of the most recognised consumer brands in the world.
