How Hillhouse Hopes to Build China’s CVS

Customers picking up prescriptions at a pharmacy in Yichang, central China's Hubei province, in 2014. Photo by AP

Hillhouse Capital Group, one of China’s most prominent investment firms and an early backer of Chinese tech giants such as Tencent and Meituan, has lately tried to buy up pet care firms, hospitals and shoe stores. Now it is targeting pharmacies.

In the past year, Hillhouse has invested $1 billion in more than 40 retail pharmacy chains, which altogether run around 6,000 brick-and-mortar drug stores, according to people who are familiar with the matter. “Hillhouse wants to build China’s CVS,” one former employee said.