The sale of Hayes Conyngham & Robinson to Boots yesterday brought to an end nearly 101 years of independent trading, but made multi-millionaires of its owners, Mr Michael Shiell and Mr Christopher Shiell. The brothers, great-grandsons of one of the founders, will pocket £6.5 million each and hold on to four store properties which they will lease to Boots.

At the announcement yesterday, Mr Michael Shiell said it made him sad to turn away from the business he had nurtured for almost 25 years, but added that he felt he had done the best thing for himself and his 300 workers.

"In the competitive market out there, it is a good deal for us and a good deal for our staff," Mr Shiell said.

In a letter to mark HCR's centenary last year, the brothers laid particular emphasis on its workers. The document now reads almost as an advance thank-you note: "Many members of staff have given their whole working lives to the company . . . Companies are only as good as their staff. This is a good company and it has been blessed with some outstanding staff who truly understand what customer care, professionalism and loyalty really mean."

The two men took on the company with their mother Mrs Sybil Shiell - a grand-daughter of Mr Henry Conyngham - when it was in dire financial straits at the start of the 1970s. After buying all of the shares, they sold off several branches and modernised HCR's approach to the pharmacy business. Within a decade, the company was expanding again and now has 15 stores in Dublin and Cork, and a total of 3,000 sq m of selling space. HCR had a turnover last year of £18.8 million and sold net assets of £1.8 million to Boots.