04/07/2026
🥰
What does it take to open your own pharmacy as a newcomer — with no local connections, no business background, and a licensing journey that spans five years? Just ask Olga. 💊
Olga grew up in Ukraine in a family of pharmacists. Her mother, her father, and many relatives all worked in pharmacy — so she spent her childhood in those spaces, absorbing a deep love for community health. By the time she graduated from Pharmaceutical University in Russia, her goal was clear: one day, she would open her own pharmacy. Not in a hospital. Not in an office. In a community, serving people directly.
When she immigrated to Canada, that dream came with her — along with years of hard work ahead. 🌍 The credential recognition process took five years. She was flying back and forth before she even had her visa, completing exams while preparing to immigrate, studying in her second language. When she finally arrived, she had no family, no network, no one to turn to. She figured things out through trial, error, and the occasional kindness of strangers.
Two years after landing, she earned her pharmacy licence. And she hasn't slowed down since.
Today, Olga owns Mettra Pharmacy in downtown Duncan — a pharmacy with a difference. 🌿 Her Eastern European training gave her a strong foundation in herbal medicine, vitamins, and supplements that goes beyond what most Canadian programs cover. Walk into Mettra and you'll find two-thirds of the store dedicated to professional supplement lines, guided by a pharmacist who truly knows them.
It's a perfect fit for the Cowichan Valley — a wellness-oriented community that values whole foods and intentional living. 🌱
Her message to newcomers holding back? Be confident. Have ambitions. Start somewhere big — because that's the only way forward. 🌟
For Olga, success is not a number. It's the feeling of doing exactly what she was meant to do, in exactly the way she always imagined.
We're so glad she chose the Cowichan Valley to call home. 💙
