A historic city centre pharmacy is being restored to its former glory by its new owners.

Rimmingtons pharmacy in Bridge Street has been bought by business partners Sajid Hussain and Qaisar Sheikh, who both trained as pharmacists at Bradford university.

Since buying the shop from national chain Lloyds they have set about re-establishing the Rimmington’s business, whose founder Felix Rimmington was a prominent chemist in the 19th century.

The Bradford-born pair have restored the frontage with a traditional sign using the same typeface as the original Rimmington’s signage. They are also collecting original Rimmington medicine bottles to display on the wooden counter which contains dozens of small drawers once used to store ingredients for remedies prepared in the shop. They are also bidding online for the shop’s original telephone.

Sajid and Qaiser are also preparing traditional over-the-counter remedies, such as cough mixture, of the type which used to be available at the original Rimmingtons.

Sajid said: “I think us getting the shop was meant to be. When we approached Lloyds about buying the shop they said they were looking for a buyer as I don’t think the business had gone as well as they had hoped since they took it over.

“We are winning back customers who remember the old Rimmingtons and many people have congratulated us for restoring the old-style business based on personal service. They say we have brought a smile back to their faces.”

The pair have also started to re-stock products that also link back to earlier days such as Bronnley scented soaps, Kent combs and brushes and Yardley scent.

Qaiser said they were keen to build up a prescription collection service for every medical practice in Bradford and deliver medicines back to surgeries.

Sajid said: “We were born and live in Bradford and studied at the Bradford university school of pharmacy. We consider ourselves very fortunate to acquire a pharmacy which has so much history and character and is very well known. We ‘re determined to restore it to its former glory and people are appreciating our efforts.”

The Rimmingtons shop was opened in 1830 by Felix M Rimming-ton. Four years ago is was acquired by Lloyds in a deal involving 100 pharmacies and before that was part of the Cohen group for eight years after the Rimmingtons sold out.

Felix Rimmington was one of a select band of chemists who helped to try and solve the Jack the Ripper murders by working on post mortem examinations of the victims.

He was also famous for finding the cause of a notorious local accidental poisoning scandal in 1858 which killed 20 children, customers of “Humbug Billy” who made and sold peppermints in Bradford’s Green Market.