Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
What really is the pharmaceutical business all about? The pharmaceutical industry is known
for developing, producing, and marketing medicine (drugs). Retail pharmacy business is
known to be involved in the sale (retailing) of generic or brand medications; some big
pharmaceutical stores even engage in the sale of medical devices.
All over the world, the pharmaceutical industry is highly regulated. This is so because of the
devastating effect of fake drugs and drug abuse which can’t be quantified. As a matter of
fact, there are several universal laws and regulations that govern the patenting, testing,
safety, efficacy and marketing of drugs. For example; in the United States, new
pharmaceutical products must be approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as
being both safe and effective before they can be allowed to go into the market.
Any entrepreneur (investor) who has a plan of starting his or her own retail pharmacy
business must comply with the Regulation of Retail Pharmacy Businesses that was passed
into law in 2008. Anyone who wants to establish a retail pharmacy business must follow the
regulations that guides the sourcing, storage, sale, supply and keeping of records, in
respect of medicinal products. Other requirements that they are expected to comply with
are; requirements that relates to staff, premises, equipment and procedures are also
stipulated.
No doubt retail pharmacy business is indeed a profitable industry; at the end of 2011, there
were just over 23,100 independent retail pharmacies operating domestically. For instance;
in 2012 about 62,000 retail, mail and specialty pharmacies operating in America filled more
than 4 billion prescriptions. As a matter of fact, in 2012 alone, statistics indicated that the
total industry revenues was between $275 billion and $290 billion.
Statistics has it that global spending on prescription drugs grew to a whopping sum of $954
billion in 2011 and The United States accounts for more than a third of the global
pharmaceutical market, with an estimate of $340 billion in annual sales. It is on record that
the retail pharmacy industry is growing at an annual rate of 1.6 percent. Retail
pharmaceutical stores are amongst the top beneficiaries; they have experienced high sales
growth in the first aid, eye care, sun care, smoking deterrent, foot care and home health
care categories.
Over and above, the retail pharmacy industry is indeed a growing and a profitable industry
and it is open to any aspiring investor (entrepreneur) to come in and establish his or her
retail pharmacy outlet.
Our Products
Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store will retail a wide range of prescription drugs from
different manufacturing brands to customers who are based in Baltimore, MD. We also
engage in the sale of beauty products, cosmetic, postcards (greeting cards), baby products,
convenience foods and other related products (small scale medical equipment / instruments
et al).
Our vision is to become the largest retail pharmacy store in the whole of Maryland, U.S.
Our mission is to establish a first class retail pharmacy store that will make available a wide
range of generic and branded prescription drugs from top pharmaceutical manufacturing
brands at affordable prices to the residence of Baltimore, MD.
Kinsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store is a business that will be built on a solid foundation.
From the outset, we have decided to recruit only qualified people to man various job
positions in our organization. We are quite aware of the rules and regulations governing the
pharmaceutical industry which is why we decided to recruit experienced and qualify
employees as foundational staff of the organization. We hope to leverage on their expertise
to build our business.
When hiring, we will look out for applicants that are not just qualified and experienced, but
honest, customer centric and are ready to work to help us build a prosperous business that
will benefit all the stake holders (the owners, workforce, and customers). As a matter of fact,
profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be
based on their performance for a period of three years or more. This are the positions that
will be available at Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store;
Pharmacist (Manager):
Merchandize Manager
Manages vendor relations, market visits, and the ongoing education and
development of the organizations’ buying teams
Helps to ensure consistent quality of drugs and products on our rack
Responsible for the purchase of goods and products for the organizations
Responsible for planning sales, monitoring inventory, selecting the merchandise,
and writing and pricing orders to vendors
Ensures that the organization operates within stipulated budget.
Pharmacy Technician
Ensures that the store facility is in tip top shape and conducive enough to welcome
customers (This includes turning on equipment such as computers, scales, printers
and fax machines)
Ensures that goods and products are properly arranged
Responsible for processing prescriptions
Responsible for sterilizing the counter tops, scales, pill counting trays, and other
medication measuring devices.
Handles administrative and bookkeeping tasks, inventory control, stocking shelves,
and data entry
Performs monthly inventory counts, file paperwork, and stock inventory
Handles any other duty as assigned by the floor manager (Pharmacist)
Sales Agents
Manages external research and coordinate all the internal sources of information to
retain the organizations’ best customers and attract new ones
Models demographic information and analyze the volumes of transactional data
generated by customer purchases
Sources for clients for the company
Responsible for promoting the company’s image
Responsible for creating marketing and sales strategies, etc.
Represents the organization in some strategic business meetings
Handles any other duty as assigned by the floor manager (Pharmacist)
Information Technologist
Cleaners:
Strength:
Our location is one of our strength. The business model we will be operating on (physical
store and online store) will be opened for 24 hours daily and 7 days in a week. There would
be multiple payment options; wide range of prescription drugs, home delivery services and
our excellent customer service culture will definitely count as a strong strength for us.
Weakness:
Our perceived weakness is the fact that we are just starting out and we may not have the
required finance to sustain the kind of publicity that we intend giving the business.
Opportunities:
The opportunities that are available to retail pharmacy business is unlimited and we are
going to position our business to make the best out of the opportunities that will be available
to us in Baltimore, MD.
Threat:
Just like any other retail business, one of the major threats that we are likely going to face is
economic downturn and unfavorable government policies (healthcare reform). It is a fact
that economic downturn affects purchasing power. Another threat that may likely confront
us is the arrival of a new retail pharmacy outlet in same location where ours is located
(Baltimore, MD.).
Market Trends
The market trend in retail pharmacy industry is directly influenced by a country’s healthcare
reform policies. The fact that the pharmaceutical industry is highly regulated means that any
entrepreneur who wants to run a retail pharmacy store must be ready to play by the book.
Loads of other factors influences the market trend in the industry and it is normal to see
bigger retail pharmacy stores (especially those with chains of outlets) weathering the storm
whenever there are major shaking in the industry. In essence, the easiest way to build a
solid and highly profitable retail pharmacy business is to engage in opening various outlets
in key cities around the U.S. and the
No doubt the industry will continue to grow and become more profitable because the aging
baby-boomer generation in Unites States are expected to drive increasing demand for
prescription drugs.
Retail Pharmacies are now making use of technology to effectively manage their business
by plugging financial leakages which happens to be one of the biggest challenges that retail
businesses faces. The use of technology, i.e. CRM software et al are very effective in
helping retail businesses manage their clientele base.
Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store is in business to service a wide range of customers
in Baltimore, Maryland. We will ensure that we target self – pay customers (who do not
have drug plans), mail order customers, and walk in customers et al.
The fact that we are going to open our doors to a wide range of customers does not in any
way stop us from demanding and screening prescriptions as required by the law. Our staff
are trained to effectively service our customers and still play by the rules governing the
industry. Our customers can be categorized into the following;
Households
Corporate Executives
Business People
Elderly people
Expectant Mothers
Sports Men and Women
Students
Sources of Income
Our source of income will be majorly in the retailing of prescription drugs and over-the-
counter drugs. Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy will also generate income from the sale of
beauty products, cosmetic, postcards (greeting cards), convenience foods and other related
products.
Sales Forecast
It is important to state that our sales forecast is based on the data gathered during our
feasibility studies, market survey and also some of the assumptions readily available on the
field.. Below are the sales projections that we were able to come up with for the first three
years of operations;
First Year-: $200,000 (From Walk – in customers) + $250,000 (From Mail Order
customers)
Second Year-: $450,000 (From Walk – in customers) + $470,000 (From Mail Order
customers)
Third Year-: $700,000 (From Walk – in customers) + $800,000 (From Mail Order
customers)
N.B: This projection is done based on what is obtainable in the industry and with the
assumption that there won’t be any major economic meltdown and natural disasters within
the period stated above. Please note that the above projection might be lower and at the
same time it might be higher.
Chemist Shop Business Plan Template – Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy
The marketing and sales strategy of Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store will be based
on generating long-term personalized relationships with customers. In order to achieve that,
we will ensure that we offer medications at lower prices, compared to what is obtainable in
Baltimore. We will also ensure that we have a wide range of drug supplies in stock for both
quick shipment and store front pick up.
All our employees will be well trained and equipped to provide excellent and knowledgeable
customer service. We know that if we are consistent with offering high quality drugs and
excellent customer service we will increase the number of our customers by more than 25%
for the first year and then more than 30 percent subsequently.
Before choosing a location for our pharmacy store, we conducted a thorough market survey
and feasibility studies in order for us to be able to be able to penetrate the available market
and become the preferred choice for residence of Baltimore, MD. We have detailed
information and data that we were able to utilize to structure our business to attract the
numbers of customers we want to attract per time.
We hired experts who have good understanding of the retail industry to help us develop
marketing strategies that will help us achieve our business goal of winning a larger
percentage of the available market in Baltimore, Maryland. In summary, Kingsley Greeno
Retail Pharmacy Store will adopt the following sales and marketing approach to win
customers over;
Place adverts on both print (community based newspapers and magazines) and
electronic media platforms
Sponsor relevant community programs
Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like; Instagram, Facebook ,
twitter, et al to promote our brand
Install our Bill Boards on strategic locations all around Baltimore, MD.
Engage in road show from time to time
Distribute our fliers and handbills in target areas
Position our Flexi Banners at strategic positions in the location where our retail store
is located.
Payment Options
At Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store, our payment policy is all inclusive because we
are quite aware that different people prefer different payment options as it suits them. Here
are the payment options that will be available in every of our outlets;
Payment by cash
Payment via Point of Sale (POS) Machine
Payment via online bank transfer (online payment portal)
Payment via Mobile money
Check (only from loyal customers)
In view of the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will help us achieve our
payment plans without any itches.
This is the key areas where we will spend our start – up capital on;
We would need an estimate of $500,000 to successfully set up our retail pharmacy store in
Baltimore, MD. Please note that this amount includes the salaries of all the staff for the first
month of operation.
Generating Funding / Startup Capital for People’s Choice Retail Store
Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store is a private business that is solely owned and
financed by Kingsley Greeno and family. They do not intend to welcome any external
business partners which is why he has decided to restrict the sourcing of the start – up
capital to 3 major sources. These are the areas Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store
intends to generate our start – up capital;
Generate part of the start – up capital from personal savings
Source for soft loans from family members and friends
Apply for loan from my Bank
N.B: We have been able to generate about $200,000 (Personal savings $150,000 and soft
loan from family members $50,000) and we are at the final stages of obtaining a loan facility
of $300,000 from our bank. All the papers and document have been signed and submitted,
the loan has been approved and any moment from now our account will be credited with the
amount.
Sample Pharmacy Business Plan Template – Sustainability and Expansion Strategy
The future of a business lies in the numbers of loyal customers that they have the capacity
and competence of the employees, their investment strategy and the business structure. If
all of these factors are missing from a business (company), then it may not be too long
before the business closes shop.
One of our major goals of starting Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store is to build a
business that will survive off its own cash flow without the need for injecting finance from
external sources once the business is officially running. We know that one of the ways of
gaining approval and winning customers over is to sell our product a little bit cheaper than
what is obtainable in the market and we are well prepared to survive on lower profit margin.
Kingsley Greeno Retail Pharmacy Store will make sure that the right foundation, structures
and processes are put in place to ensure that our staff welfare are well taken of. Our
company’s corporate culture is designed to drive our business to greater heights and
training and re – training of our workforce is at the top burner. As a matter of fact, profit-
sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be based
on their performance for a period of three years or more. We know that if that is put in place,
we will be able to successfully hire and retain the best hands we can get in the industry;
they will be more committed to help us build the business of our dreams.
Check List / Milestone