PharmacyForum UK 2027: A Buyer’s Guide for Pharmacy Groups

A pre-arranged supplier meeting removes the problem of finding the right stand. It does not remove the harder problem: deciding whether the proposed solution fits the pharmacy group.

PharmacyForum UK 2027 is designed around scheduled conversations between UK pharmacy-group leaders and vendors. The format can make two days commercially efficient, but only when each meeting starts with a real operating decision, comparable evidence and a clear boundary between discovery and procurement.

Confirmed PharmacyForum UK 2027 details

The organiser’s official PharmacyForum UK 2027 page confirms 17–18 May 2027 at Eurostars Sitges in Spain. It positions the event for UK pharmacy groups and describes a programme of panels, discussions, workshops, hosted networking and pre-arranged meetings with vendors.

The page currently says pharmacy groups attend as guests and may request an invitation. It separately describes paid, limited vendor participation. Those are different routes, not a general promise of free attendance. The organiser also says that the 2027 agenda is still being built and currently displays speakers and agenda material from the earlier edition. This guide therefore does not treat those names or sessions as confirmed for 2027.

The venue is outside the UK even though the forum is for the UK pharmacy sector. Owners should account for travel time, insurance, passport requirements, internal approval and the opportunity cost of taking senior colleagues away from the business. Confirm what accommodation, meals and functions are included in the current invitation rather than relying on a previous edition.

Decide whether the forum fits the group

PharmacyForum is most relevant when a group has strategic sourcing questions that benefit from concentrated access to several providers and peers. It is a weaker fit when the requirement is still undefined, the decision owner cannot attend or the team is not ready to compare suppliers on the same basis.

Write the business questions before accepting meetings. A group may need to replace a failing platform, reduce avoidable branch work, improve service-booking capacity, strengthen cybersecurity, redesign estates or consolidate suppliers. “See what is new” is not a decision brief. It gives every meeting permission to define the problem in the vendor’s favour.

Connect each question to the group’s pharmacy strategy. Record the outcome required, branches affected, present baseline, non-negotiable controls, available management capacity and the date by which a decision is genuinely needed. If the issue is not important enough to own after the event, it should not fill a scheduled meeting.

Build one decision brief per category

A short brief should fit on one page. State the current problem, evidence, affected users, mandatory outcome, constraints, integrations, security expectations, implementation window and the decision process after the forum. Give suppliers enough context to respond specifically without carrying patient-identifiable or commercially excessive data into an event.

Define the group’s internal roles. One colleague may lead the commercial conversation, another the operating workflow and another the technical or governance challenge. Agree who may request information, arrange a demonstration or invite a proposal. Nobody should sign an order, accept a trial or disclose sensitive information merely because the meeting timetable creates momentum.

If the decision concerns IT, start with the estate and supplier-boundary questions in our pharmacy IT support guide. If it concerns performance, use the definitions and data-quality checks in the pharmacy data analytics guide. The meeting brief should reflect how the group really works, not an idealised process map.

Use a consistent meeting structure

Scheduled meetings create useful discipline when the group controls the sequence. Open with the decision and present state. Ask the vendor to demonstrate the relevant workflow. Test an ordinary case, an exception and a failure. Finish with evidence requests, assumptions, exclusions and a clear disposition.

1. Problem: What is happening now, and which evidence shows it matters?
2. Fit: Which branches, users, services, systems and jurisdictions does the offer support?
3. Proof: What was demonstrated live, what is documented and what remains a claim?
4. Delivery: Who configures, migrates, trains, supports and accepts the work?
5. Exceptions: What happens when data is missing, an integration fails or a branch cannot use the standard route?
6. Exit: How are data, configuration and service continuity protected if the relationship ends?

Use the same scorecard for every provider in a category. Record evidence seen, evidence promised, unresolved question, risk, dependency and next gate. A personable conversation is useful, but it should not become a higher score than a demonstrated capability.

Test evidence, implementation and risk

Ask what the supplier’s evidence actually covers. A result from one branch, one patient journey or one unusually supported implementation may not transfer to a larger estate. Request the denominator, period, baseline, exclusions and implementation conditions behind any performance claim. Separate customer experience from independently verifiable evidence.

For technology, cover identity, access, logging, hosting, backups, incident response, subprocessors, data location, retention, export and deletion. The National Cyber Security Centre’s guidance on using software as a service securely gives owners a useful control set. Apply the questions in our pharmacy cybersecurity guide to the proposed service and the implementation around it.

Do not leave implementation until after price. Ask for the named delivery model, responsibilities, dependencies, realistic timeline, branch sequence, data work, training, acceptance criteria and support handover. A lower licence price can be poor value when the group absorbs configuration, migration, local workarounds and unresolved supplier boundaries.

Use peer conversations responsibly

Peer discussion can expose practical questions that a product demonstration avoids. Ask another owner what changed after the first 90 days, which branch struggled, how much management time implementation took, which assumption proved wrong and what they would put into the contract now.

Respect confidentiality. Do not share patient information, identifiable colleague concerns, sensitive security detail or commercially restricted terms. Treat another group’s experience as a lead for due diligence, not proof that the same result will transfer to your estate.

The forum is also distinct from a broad exhibition such as The Pharmacy Show 2027. PharmacyForum’s scheduled meeting model can suit strategic sourcing by pharmacy groups; a large trade show can suit wider discovery, learning and team attendance. Choose the event that matches the decision rather than attending both by habit.

Turn Sitges into a controlled next step

Review the scorecards before the travel day ends. Classify each supplier as decline, evidence required, formal comparison or scoped discovery. Do not use “follow up” as a catch-all. Every surviving action needs an owner, deadline and the evidence required to pass the next gate.

Within five working days, send consistent requests to shortlisted suppliers. Within 30 days, decide whether the category moves into procurement, a bounded pilot, further discovery or no action. Record why. A clear decision not to proceed is a commercially useful result when the evidence shows poor fit, excessive dependency or insufficient capacity.

Pharmacy Mentor helps pharmacy groups connect strategy, patient journeys, digital platforms, supplier choices and measurable growth. Explore our pharmacy digital-growth services, or start a conversation about turning a supplier discussion into a controlled delivery plan.

Frequently asked questions

When is PharmacyForum UK 2027?

The official event page schedules PharmacyForum UK 2027 for Monday 17 and Tuesday 18 May 2027. Confirm current dates and arrangements directly with the organiser before travelling.

Where is PharmacyForum UK 2027?

The organiser places PharmacyForum UK 2027 at Eurostars Sitges in Spain, near Barcelona. It is an event for UK pharmacy groups even though the venue is outside the UK.

Is PharmacyForum UK 2027 free?

The official page currently says pharmacy groups attend for free as invited guests, while vendor participation is paid and limited. Request current terms from the organiser; do not assume every role or organisation is eligible.

How should a pharmacy group prepare for PharmacyForum?

Choose the decisions that justify attendance, prepare a one-page brief for each supplier category, use consistent scenarios and scorecards, protect sensitive information and define the procurement gate that follows the event.