Farmacia Salcete looking to expand footprint: Kare

HERALD: How is Farmacia Salcete doing these days?

KUNAL KARE: Like every society needs doctors, it needs pharmacies. It is a noble profession, people always fall sick and we provide a service. We don’t look at what we do as a business. Most of the drugs we sell are prescription drugs. In fact 90% are sold only against prescriptions. 

HERALD: Is there a pattern in terms of the sale of various medicines?

KK: Sales of medication picks up from June and decreases by September. Let me explain, during the monsoons, people fall sick and this is true of the old and the infirm. Once the monsoon ends then fevers disappear.  

HERALD: What are the trends emerging in the business?

KK: let me make it clear, the trade in Goa is very ethical. Most pharmacies outside Goa sometimes switch the medicine recommended. Meaning the doctor might recommend a medicine but the pharmacy might try to push another medication for whatever reason. In Goa that does not happen. Here the educations levels are very high and the people check the pharmacy and the bills. In our pharmacy even if one tablet is sold it is billed.     

HERALD: What is your assessment of online sales?

KK: Online is cheaper but medicines have to be stored in certain conditions. Insulin has to be stored between 2 and 8 degrees. If it is stored in UP and has to be transported to Goa, how will it be done? These are questions that have to be answered. Even in a market like the US, online sales have not gone with the gusto that one usually expects.  

HERALD: What are the challenges of conducting business in Goa? 

KK: To run a pharmacy, it is mandatory to have atleast one pharmacist employed. However in Goa , people with such qualifications are in short supply. The qualified candidate should have a diploma in pharmacy. There are two colleges with approximately 100 students. The demand is way higher that what is produced by the system. Otherwise conducting business is fine in Goa.

HERALD: do you have any plans to expand beyond Goa?

KK: We have five pharmacies and intend to go forward through the franchisee model. We will own all the immovable property and the franchisee will bring in the money for the medicines. We would like to increase the number of pharmacies to twenty in Goa in the next five years using the franchisee model. We have no plans to go outside Goa.