MONTREAL — Startup Canadian drug chain Rx Drug Mart Inc. has obtained financing to fuel its growth strategy.

BDC Capital said Monday that it has closed a $10 million minority equity investment in Toronto-based Rx Drug Mart (RxDM), alongside Persistence Capital Partners (PCP) and RxDM’s other existing shareholders.

Brian Dawson

The equity investment finances RxDM’s acquisition of 27 Rexall pharmacies in Alberta, British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, Ontario and Saskatchewan from McKesson Corp. McKesson had to divest the drug stores under a consent agreement with the Competition Bureau of Canada to close its $2.2 billion acquisition of Rexall Health.

Upon the completion of the Rexall store purchase, RxDM will have a network of more than 40 pharmacies across Canada.

“We are building a national network of pharmacies in Canadian communities that puts the focus on the needs of patients, pharmacists, staff and communities,” Brian Dawson, chief executive officer of Rx Drug Mart, said in a statement.

“As we achieve our goal, we have become one of the fastest-growing businesses in Canada, and we are excited to have BDC Capital’s Growth Equity team join our partnership with PCP,” added Dawson, a onetime member of the senior management team at Rexall. “This investment helps further our vision of expanding pharmacy services and coverage in Canadian communities.”

RxDM said its pharmacies are located across Canada in towns and small, rural communities. The pharmacy operator’s management team includes experience at chain pharmacies such as Shoppers Drug Mart, Loblaw and Rexall — including Tom Moffatt, who joined Rx Drug Mart in August 2015 and spending 21 years at Shoppers Drug Mart, most recently as vice president of operations and strategy.

“We are excited to support RxDM’s platform as they execute on their growth strategy to expand across the country,” stated Claude Miron, vice president of growth equity at BDC Capital.