Worcester Business Journal

www.wbjournal.com February 16, 2014 • Worcester Business Journal 13 >> B U S I N E S S L E A D E R S O F T H E Y E A R SMALL BUSINESS Edward S. Price, PolyCarbon Industries, Leominster NONPROFIT Eric H. Shultz, Fallon Community Health Plan, Worcester CORPORATE CITIZEN Cutler Associates, Worcester 2005 LARGE BUSINESS John O'Brien, UMass Memorial Health Care, Worcester SMALL BUSINESS Peter Bovenzi, Bovenzi Inc., Leominster NONPROFIT David Turner, Masonic Health Systems Co., Charlton CORPORATE CITIZEN The Wellness Corp., Shrewsbury 2006 LARGE BUSINESS Reinaldo Lopez, Resource Management Inc., Fitchburg SMALL BUSINESS Elaine Osgood, Atlas Travel, Milford NONPROFIT Maurice "Mo" Boisvert, YOU Inc., Worcester CORPORATE CITIZEN Rotmans, Worcester Continued on next page H amid Mohaghegh has suc- cessfully stood up to the big- pharmacy players in growing his independent Central Massachusetts chain, Family Pharmacy Inc., over the last 15 years. While independent pharmacies have struggled to keep their doors open, Mohaghegh seems to have found bound- less opportunity. In 2014, he doubled the number of his company's retail locations from six to 12 in Central and Western Massachusetts and hired 40 new employ- ees. He hopes to open more locations in new markets in the coming years. The secret is personalized service, and finding opportunities that large phar- macy chains aren't interested in, Mohaghegh said. Family Pharmacy takes a holistic approach to managing their patients' prescriptions. "No one is a number to us," Mohaghegh said. "We care about them as patients." Mohaghegh, 59, of Holden, is himself a pharmacist. But a little prodding reveals he's had a hand in a variety of business roles and ventures throughout the region. It started when Mohaghegh arrived in the U.S. from Iran at age 18. He had dreamed to one day come to the United States and run his own business. But first, he worked in several Worcester manufacturing plants to earn money for college. Eventually, he graduated from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences in Boston and began his career. That led to a number of roles in Central Massachusetts hospitals in the mid-1980s to mid-1990s. Mohaghegh worked as director of pharmacy at Holden Hospital, now an outpatient facility, then moved on to Harrington Memorial Hospital in Southbridge, where he was director of pharmacy services before being pro- moted to assistant administrator. Then, Mohaghegh decided to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams in the Middle East. He launched his first venture, a medical supply and pharmaceutical business, in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, where he was also a hospital administrator. But at the age of 39 and with a young child at home, Mohaghegh decided to return to Central Massachusetts in 1997. Daniel Moen, the former CEO of Heywood Hospital who is now chief executive of the Springfield-based Sisters of Providence Health System, was exe- cuting a turnaround. Knowing of the business acumen Mohaghegh displayed at other local hospitals, Moen was eager to bring him into the fold. "He was definitely somebody I wanted as chief of operations," Moen said of his longtime friend and colleague. "He's an incredibly hard worker, very dedicated, very loyal and he gets results. That's the big thing," Moen added. This became the impetus for Mohaghegh's Central Massachusetts pharmacy venture. Moen explained that Heywood opened a retail pharmacy on the hospital campus for the convenience of patients and doctors, but it was strug- gling. Mohaghegh wanted to take it over and make it successful. After a due-dili- gence period, he purchased it at fair market value. "He took it and really turned around that operation and also used it as a springboard to his other sites," Moen said. In the early days, Mohaghegh fondly remembers making home deliveries to elderly patients, and realized the need for more humanized pharmacy services. He ended up opening additional sites in North Central Massachusetts, in Ashburnham and Athol, and today has sites as far west as Amherst and as far east >> Continued on Page 17 P H O T O / M A T T V O L P I N I Going where others won't Hamid Mohaghegh, a pharmacist with an entrepreneurial bent, has built and grown a chain of independent pharmacies in an industry dominated by big chains SMALL BUSINESS/ ENTREPRENEUR Hamid Mohaghegh, Family Pharmacy Inc. BY EMILY MICUCCI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer

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