There have been several shenanigans in ordering medicines and we have always resorted to the wholesale market along with the regular retail business model. But a digital upgrade to any industry comes with flexibility and enough room for adjustments.
As digital outlook to the pharmaceutical industry takes a front seat, customers can now order medicines online with the help of several e-commerce platforms. Such a seamless process has been further backed by companies like Pharmeasy.
The healthcare infrastructure formed by Pharmeasy has made the entire industry very accessible. With the help of Pharmeasy, patients can stay in touch with their local stores which is in turn creating a sustainable ecosystem. The Indian healthcare industry is also greatly benefitted from such innovation and data-centric technology.
Pharmeasy Healthcare is an online pharmacy that delivers medicines and several other equipment related to medical purposes. The company is operational in many cities in India and with Pharmeasy, ordering medicines at your doorstep has never been easier. Several thousands of customers are associated with the company and are satisfied with the services provided by Pharmeasy.
About Pharmeasy :
Pharmeasy is headquartered in Mumbai, India, and was founded in 2014. The company was established by Dharmil Sheth and Dr. Daval Shah. In 2021, Pharmeasy had a turnover of about $315.99 million or Rs. 2,360 crores. Pharmeasy also has a net worth of about $5.4 billion as recorded in 2022.
Pharmeasy is an e-commerce platform that delivers medicines and many other medical equipments to its users. When a customer uploads their prescription into the platform, the system forwards it to the nearby pharmacy. The technology of the company efficiently delivers high-quality products, which are also affordable for the customers.
The several discounts offered by Pharmeasy also ensure the quality standards of the products. This is why the users of Pharmeasy are still retaining with the company due to flexibility and affordability.
After the prescription is sent to the pharmacy, a delivery representative reaches the store and packs the essentials following all guidelines. Then your order from Pharmeasy is delivered to your house.
The Industry of Pharmeasy :
The advent of technology has accelerated the growth of several industries. And similarly, the healthcare industry has also been seeing significant growth due to better availability of technology along with the internet. The users of the internet have grown at a rate of about 18.17% between the years 2015 to 2019. Reports also indicate that it will grow at a CAGR of about 8.78% from 2020 to 2025.
Transaction in these e-commerce websites have also increased phenomenally over the past few years. The pharmaceutical industry in India is expected to rise almost 7 times by 2023 with an expected valuation of about $2.7 billion or about Rs. 21,081 crore.
The background of the founders with the startup story :
Dharmil Sheth co-founded Pharmeasy and also holds the position of co-founder for API Holdings. Along with these, Dharmil is the President of Ekagrata and 91streets, which he created before Pharmeasy.
Dharmil Sheth studied for a Bachelors of Technology degree in Electronics Engineering and an MBA from IIM, Ghaziabad. Dharmil worked in the Business Development department of Techno Gravity Solutions and did a summer internship with MakeMyTrip.
Dr. Dhaval Shah studied MBBS from the Rajiv Gandhi Government Medical College. Dr. Dhaval then did an MBA from XLRI in Jamshedpur. Dr. Shah has been the general secretary in the two colleges. After this, he became a consultant in McKinsey & Company and later founded Pharmeasy along with API Holdings.
Pharmeasy had one objective and that is to become the best medicine delivery platform in India. The digital potential of the modern age has allowed Pharmeasy to further scale and develop. Dr. Dhaval and his friend Dharmil recognized the potential of the pharmaceutical industry in India.
They capitalized on the idea and created Pharmeasy in 2014. With time, the company can now deliver medicines to about 98% pincodes in India. The doorstep delivery of medicines was the primary motive of the company in order to enhance the healthcare industry in India.
Due to digitization, everything is now accessible to our smartphones and computing devices. We also schedule doctor’s appointments with the help of the digital revolution. Companies like Pharmeasy are helping India grow the healthcare sector, which is ultimately for the betterment of the public.
The business model of Pharmeasy :
Pharmeasy is like the Blinkit of medicine, where medicines are being delivered to the customers, instead of groceries. The Pharmeasy tagline says, “Take it easy, Pharmeasy”. The company system uses the pincodes to recognize the nearest chemist store and also provides a 20% discount to customers, ordering from a mobile app.
The business is a three-section model which includes customers, suppliers and delivery network.
The buyers with the help of the app or website orders the medicine and the suppliers who are partnered with Pharmeasy maintain the stock and keep them listed on the website. Pharmeasy also earns from companies that feature its products on the Pharmeasy platform.
The delivery network of Pharmeasy is wide and products reach the doorstep of the customers. Due to government guidelines, Pharmeasy does not sell Schedule H drugs. Pharmeasy is trying to assure the customers that the medicines are of industry standards.
Pharmeasy provides space for sponsorships that pharmaceutical companies offer on the company homepage. Businesses can now promote products with almost no hassle. The company also gives several discounts, which in turn provides a revenue to Pharmeasy.
Pharm-easy earns a share from the products that are sold to the customers. Along with this, the company also gets revenue from the delivery amount that gets added on the products. Pharmeasy got a funding of about $1.6 billion and due to the oncoming recession, investors are having second thoughts in providing funds. This is why Pharmeasy secured about $200 million this year, which is about 15% to 20% less than the last year, which was about $5 billion.
The company has arranged several series of funding with investors like Amansa Capital, OrbiMed, Eight Roads Ventures and many others. These rounds got the company funds of about $200 million to $350 million and more. Pharmeasy has about 12 main investors and about a total of 43 investors.
The ESOPs of Pharm-easy :
Due to an impressive growth of the company, Pharmeasy has provided several employee stock options or ESOPs for co-founders, high-level executives and also the employees. The company provided about 79,987 ESOPs to Dharmil Sheth, Dr. Dhaval Shah, Siddharth Shah, Hardik Dedhia and Karsh Parekh. Surveys indicate that these ESOPs are valued at about Rs. 236 crore. ESOPs worth about Rs. 356 crore have also been provided to eligible employees.
Pharmeasy has also acquired several companies that include a supply chain management group from Bangalore named, Aknamed. Pharmeasy also acquired about 66% of Thyrocare, a diagnostics laboratory, based in Mumbai, at an amount of about Rs. 4,546 crore.
Medlife, a medicine delivery company in Bangalore has also been acquired by Pharmeasy, which was approved by Competition Commission of India. Medlife is acquired 100% by Pharmeasy and the promoters of Medlife will be provided with about 19.95% stake in the deal.
Challenges and Development :
Like every company, Pharmeasy also found it very difficult to deliver medicines without a prescription. Just knowing the names of the medicines was insufficient for a delivery without a valid prescription. But the company did surpass the challenges and emerged as a valuable and reputed brand in its industry.
The company also laid off several employees with a two months severance package. These employees were from a subsidiary of Pharmeasy named Docon Technologies. Docon Technologies later rebranded to be Pharmesy One.
The reputation and great delivery network helped Pharmeasy to retain new and existing customers. Although there are competitors like Tata 1Mg, Ranger Health, Hello Heart and many others, Pharmeasy has maintained impressive market share.
In 2020, Pharmeasy had a revenue of about Rs. 730 crore which increased to about Rs. 2,360 crore in 2021. The expense of the company also increased from Rs. 1,080.4 crore in 2020 to Rs. 2,980.9 crore in 2021.
In November of 2021, Pharmeasy filed DRHP with SEBI to raise about Rs. 6,250 crore with a fresh batch of shares. News also indicated that the volatile nature of the market along with upcoming recession led Pharmeasy to postpone IPO plans.
The company also partnered with about 60k physical stores, which are serving more than 20 million customers. The story of Pharmeasy is definitely great and innovative. The idea to enhance the Indian healthcare industry is always for the welfare of the society, which is basically the core objective of entrepreneurship.
Frequently Asked Questions :
- When was Pharmeasy founded ?
Ans: Pharmeasy was founded in 2014.
- Who founded Pharmeasy ?
Ans: Pharmeasy was co-founded by Dharmil Sheth and Dr. Dhaval Shah.
- Where is the headquarters of Pharmeasy ?
Ans: Pharmeasy has its headquarters in Mumbai, India.
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