Mediq is a Dutch

health care Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health pr ...

company, which provides pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, by operating

apothecaries ''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...

and by delivering to medical centres and

patient A patient is any recipient of health care services that are performed by healthcare professionals. The patient is most often ill or injured and in need of treatment by a physician, nurse, optometrist, dentist, veterinarian, or other heal ...

s. The company is active in 15 countries and in 2012 had a revenue of

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2.61 billion. Since 2013 it has been owned by

Advent International Advent International is a global private equity firm focused on buyouts of companies in Western and Central Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia. The firm focuses on international buyouts, growth and strategic restructuring in five core ...

History

Founded in 1899 as "Onderlinge Pharmaceutische Groothandel" (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

: ''Mutual Pharmaceutical Wholesale Company''), it was a cooperative association of apothecaries who did not want medicine to be supplied by unauthorised people, and who started creating their own pharmaceuticals on a small scale. Over time activities increased and in 1988 it was renamed as "Coöperatieve Apothekers Vereniging OPG U.A." (

: ''Cooperative Apothecaries Association OPG U.A.'') - wholesale was removed from the name, however it remained in the abbreviation OPG. In 1992 the company was listed on the

Amsterdam Stock Exchange Euronext Amsterdam is a stock exchange based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Formerly known as the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, it merged on 22 September 2000 with the Brussels Stock Exchange and the Paris Stock Exchange to form Euronext. The r ...

and this was followed on 10 January 2001 when the association became a

joint-stock company A joint-stock company is a business entity in which shares of the company's stock can be bought and sold by shareholders. Each shareholder owns company stock in proportion, evidenced by their shares (certificates of ownership). Shareholders a ...

(''naamloze vennootschap'') under the name "OPG Groep NV" (

: ''OPG Group NV''). In 2009 the name was finally changed to Mediq NV, the current official name. In a 2011 tactical analysis by Mediq it was concluded that leaving the stock exchange and becoming a privately owned company, was the best longterm strategy.

expressed interest in purchasing the company in 2012. On 13 February 2013 they bought the stocks and on 13 March 2013 Mediq left the stockmarket.

Activities

Mediq provides pharmaceuticals and medical supplies. It has its own chain of apothecaries, supplies other medical centres, and supplies to patients directly at home. They are the market leader in the Netherlands with 226 of their own pharmacies, about 25 franchises, and supplies another 160 pharmacies. The company is active in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

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Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establish ...

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and the

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. Their headquarters are located in

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Net ...

, Netherlands.

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.mediq.com

References

Health care companies of the Netherlands Health care companies established in 1899 Dutch brands 2013 mergers and acquisitions Private equity portfolio companies Privately held companies of the Netherlands Companies formerly listed on Euronext Amsterdam Dutch companies established in 1899