Entrepreneurial UF students learn to launch independent pharmacies, filling a gap in Florida and beyond

At a time when more than one independent pharmacy in the U.S. closes nearly every day, leaving rural communities without adequate health resources, University of Florida pharmacy students and graduates are paying attention — and centering their career goals on serving those populations.

Garrett Smith, Pharm.D., a 2019 graduate of the UF College of Pharmacy, is helping set this example. In his hometown of Jay, Florida — a rural community of 500 people nestled in the northwest Panhandle — Smith opened Equity Rx to care for the friends, teachers and neighbors he has known his entire life. Offering everything from after-hours deliveries to face-to-face counseling, Smith has built a pharmacy centered on accessibility and trust.

“Independent pharmacies provide a vital health care service to communities, especially in rural areas,” Smith said. “I will oftentimes drive prescriptions to patients who have no reliable transportation to get to a pharmacy.”

Smith’s path to ownership began in 2020 during his community pharmacy residency at UF. When he learned a local pharmacy was closing, he committed to opening one himself. With no playbook, he navigated financing, licensure and regulatory hurdles to keep pharmacy services available in Jay.