Role Overview

To manage and optimise Uniphar’s retail pharmacy property estate, ensuring efficient lease management, compliance with legal and health & safety obligations, and alignment with the company’s strategic and financial objectives. The role also supports future business growth through property acquisition and development opportunities.

1. Business Asset Management – Property

Manage a portfolio of 150+ leased properties with an annual rent commitment of approximately €15 million +.
Negotiate with landlords to ensure rental costs reflect market valuations.
Secure favourable outcomes at rent reviews, renewals, and lease terminations.
Oversee all lease-related activities, including break options, amendments, assignments, and sublets.
Manage subtenant relationships and ensure timely rent collection.
Identify and secure tenants for vacant units that align with retail pharmacy strategy.
Prepare annual and five-year property projections to support budgeting and strategic planning.
Present recommendations to the Senior Management Team on lease renewals, expiries, and property risks/opportunities.
Monitor local planning applications and identify potential risks or development opportunities.

2. Compliance and Legal

Ensure full compliance with all lease covenants, planning permissions, and regulatory requirements.
Maintain all pharmacy premises in safe and compliant condition.
Act as the main liaison with external legal advisers on property matters.
Provide heads of terms for lease negotiations and oversee legal execution of lease documentation.

3. Facilities Management and Cost Control

Act as key point of contact with the company’s facilities management provider.
Manage estate-related fixed and variable costs within approved budgets.
Approve repair and maintenance works through the facilities service portal.
Prepare annual and five-year capex forecasts for property, plant, and equipment upgrades.
Manage utility, printer, and photo lab contracts to ensure value for money.

4. Health & Safety Leadership

Lead the national, multi-functional Health & Safety team for the retail pharmacy division.
Ensure full compliance with all health, safety, and regulatory requirements.
Implement and monitor risk assessments, fire safety procedures, and first aid coverage.
Work with Operations to mitigate identified risks and prevent reoccurrence of incidents.
Liaise with insurers for all incident reporting and claim management.
Support resolution of insurance claims in collaboration with legal and insurer representatives.

5. Business Development and Expansion

Identify and evaluate property acquisition and development opportunities aligned to business strategy.
Act as key point of contact for property and selling agents.
Prepare business cases with valuation analysis and return on investment assessments.
Lead negotiations with sellers and coordinate due diligence across internal and external stakeholders.

Key Relationships

Internal: Operations, Finance, Legal, Health & Safety, Facilities, Senior Management Team.
External: Landlords, Property Agents, Legal Advisers, Insurers, Contractors, Local Authorities, Subtenants.

Qualifications & Experience

Degree in Real Estate, Property, Facilities Management, or Business (or equivalent experience).
Minimum 5 years’ experience managing commercial or retail property portfolios.
Proven success in lease negotiation, property compliance, and budget management.
Knowledge of Irish property law, leasing structures, and planning regulations.
Experience managing health & safety compliance in multi-site operations.

Skills & Competencies

Strong negotiation and influencing skills.
Excellent commercial and financial acumen.
Strategic thinker with sound judgment and problem-solving ability.
Strong organisational and project management skills.
Effective communicator and relationship builder.
Collaborative leadership approach.

Performance Indicators

Rent savings and favourable lease outcomes achieved.
Compliance with legal, lease, and health & safety obligations.
Property and maintenance costs within budget.
Successful renewals, closures, and new acquisitions completed on schedule.
Delivery of growth opportunities aligned with business strategy.

Uniphar Background
Uniphar Group is a rapidly expanding diversified healthcare services business with a global footprint and a proud heritage in Ireland. Since Uniphar became a publicly listed company in 2019, the Group has grown organically and through a series of strategic acquisitions, which continue to strengthen Uniphar’s international reach. With a workforce of close to 3,000 spread across Ireland, United Kingdom, the Netherlands, the Nordics and the USA, Uniphar is a trusted global partner to pharma and medtech manufacturers, working to improve patient access to medicines and treatments around the world.

Uniphar provides outsourced and specialised services to its clients, leveraging the strong relationships with 200+ of the world’s best known pharmaco-medical manufacturers across multiple geographies, enabled by our cutting-edge digital technology and our expert teams. Uniphar is organised into three key divisions: Supply Chain & Retail, Commercial & Clinical (Med Tech / Pharma) and Product Access.

Culture at Uniphar
We pride ourselves in being truly entrepreneurial, innovative, collaborative, with a strong problem-solving ethos. We have built working relationships which span decades with many of the world’s largest pharma and medtech companies. We believe that this is because we know how to build a relationship of trust with our partners - we put our customers and their patients at the heart of what we do and treat them with integrity and respect. Everything Uniphar does is enabled by our people. As we continue to grow domestically and internationally, we become more diverse. This rich diversity fuels our business and enriches our culture.

Property & Estate Manager

Job Description