Betty's Saturday job at Pitlochry chemist shop lasted 49 years

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A Perthshire woman who worked in the same job in Pitlochry for almost 50 years has retired from the chemist shop. Betty Black (65) was born and bred in the Highland Perthshire town and began with a Saturday job at what was Savoury & Moore’s chemist in 1973. “I thought, ach weel, I’ll give it a try.

And I never looked back,” Betty confided.First based at 124 Atholl Road (now a cafe) the pharmacy has branches at number 65 and 112.She has been Davidsons’ longest-serving employee.

Bar one year working in the old Pitlochry Co-op, Betty spent her whole working life selling creams and throat sweets, soaps and nail varnish.

It’s hard to estimate how many prescriptions packages have passed through her hands.The chemist shop went through several owners, it starting out with Savoury & Moore which then became T Gordon Drummond before it became Lloyds until Davidsons took over on January 1, 2010.And all through that time, Betty was the friendly face at the till.“I was hoping to make it to the full 50 years,” Betty told the PA.“But with COVID, those were very hard years to be working and I decided I would stop this year.”She said ever since her first boss of five years Les Simms treated her well, she has enjoyed working for a series of able pharmacists, adding: “Everyone has been very good to me.”Betty remembered how, during the pandemic, staff were kept extra busy because doctors were not seeing people face to face and the chemist was the first port of call.Many staff got ill with COVID but Betty stayed well.