The company behind two pharmacies in Suffolk and Essex has been acquired for an undisclosed sum by Peterborough-based internet pharmacy group Pharmadose.

Armada Pharmacy Group, which has stores in Lavenham and Chafford Hundred, will more the double the turnover of Pharmadose, from £1.3m to £3.3m, and take the group’s total workforce to 25.

Pharmadose was established in 2010 and, besides an online pharmacy, it also serves a number of local care homes from its Peterborough base.

It purchased its first retail pharmacy in Twickenham, London, in 2013 and, having recently secured £2.3m of funding from Santander Corporate & Commercial, it plans to expand its portfolio to 10 sites in the next few years.

Svikrut Patel, a director at Pharmadose, said: “The funding from Santander has helped us realise our ambitions of owning a group of retail pharmacies in the East of England.

“After operating online only to begin with, the retail premises give us a chance to liaise directly with customers and diversify the products we sell. We have exciting growth plans and hope to add to our portfolio very soon.”

Mark Lawson, relationship director at Santander, said: “Pharmadose is an excellent example of a business which has evolved its business model in order to continue growing. The business started online and now hopes to own 10 retail pharmacies in the coming years; an ambition we are sure they will achieve.”