How pharmacies operate in SA, independents versus big players like Clicks, Dischem & the easiest way to make more money – this is how to increase your pharmacy revenue in SA
Pharmacies are a vital part of South Africa’s healthcare industry.
They often have great penetration into communities and towns in the country – sometimes pharmacies are better situated to really help people than doctors and medical facilities!
Yet making money as a pharmacy isn’t easy in South Africa, due to governmental controls that make pharmacies rely heavily on retail, forcing pharmacies to spend a lot of time trying to generate enough foot traffic just to stay afloat – that’s why the big retail chains like Clicks and Dischem have taken the lion’s share of the market away from independent pharmacies.
But it doesn’t need to be that way.
There is now a way for EVERY pharmacy to offer device-enabled doctor services, drawing in even more clients with little to no cost for the pharmacy.
Here’s what you need to know about increasing pharmacy revenue in SA…
Pharmacies have multiple potential income streams. The first being prescription medications, which is very strongly regulated by government:
Vital as the regulation is, it doesn’t allow enough for most pharmacies to stay open. Even if they can get medication at better wholesale prices, they are still capped on what they can charge.
And with the rising cost of doing business in South Africa – high rent, salaries, reporting and operational costs – it’s extremely tough to survive on just schedule medicine dispensing. Let alone increase your revenue with it.
So how can a pharmacy make more money?
To supplement their core function of regulated medicine, pharmacies tend to focus on over-the-counter medicine (unregulated) and other commercial retail sales – chips and chocolates etc.
The problem with retail is, as we learnt with grocery stores, mega chain stores have so much clout and buying power that they can negotiate better deals with suppliers (because they buy so much at once), so they can often out-price your local independent pharmacy.
We’ve seen this happen in South Africa, where giants like Clicks and Dischem run circles around local independent pharmacies, in terms of being able to grab market share and generate revenue.
But it’s not over for smaller pharmacies, there’s a new technology that just might help swing things back in their favour…
Another way pharmacies try to increase revenue is by offering clinic services inside their premises – a nurse mans a mini “clinic” a few days a week where customers can get basic advice, flu vaccines etc.
The problem with that is, your nurse can’t prescribe medications, which would be great considering you’re a pharmacy… but now there is a way.
Udok has introduced a device-enabled doctor service in your pharmacy that you can launch right in your pharmacy. We’ve rolled it out successfully across hundreds of retail pharmacies in SA, including one of the biggest – see how it works in our post on seeing a doctor at Clicks.
For an example of this, see how Udok has enabled people to get a doctor to write a prescription inside the clicks store.
We’ve rolled this out in hundreds of pharmacies around South Africa, and all of them report amazing success as they can now advertise that clients can come consult a doctor right in their pharmacy.
It also works well if you have an existing clinic nurse, because they can assist the patient through the consultation process – that way you generate both the clinic revenue, medications and additional retail revenue (yes, this helps you drive more foot traffic through your pharmacy, too).
It’s very simple, you can get setup, fast.
To get Udok’s device-enabled doctor service in your pharmacy today, simply:
You’ll be in good company – Udok is the fastest-growing virtual doctor network in South Africa, offering digital medical records, full-service practice management tools, a complete pharmacy network and significantly lower doctors fees for customers.
Also be sure and sign your pharmacy up to the Udok provider’s network for free.
The doctor will see you now
Plus: No queues, no waiting, no travelling necessary. You can speak to one of the best doctors in South Africa right now, on your device – within 1 minute.
They can give you a prescription, sick note, advice & can even write referrals for lab tests – anything you need from the comfort of your home.
