APRIL,Edition # 24, 2001

"Find your own niche!"

A phrase that seems to be thrown around with gay abandon in today's retail environment.
Do we ever really appreciate what this means to our business in matters other than immediate economic reward, or do we take what industry leaders say for gospel.
Before the day I decided to start the business plan for ePharmacy, I had observed a concerning trend in pharmacies that I had managed and owned over the years. Apart from the big threats to the industry that all pharmacists are fully aware of, I noticed the attack on the bottom line of the once invincible "nursing home" dollar. For years this dollar had represented a reliable profitable cash flow that although not dynamic in trade, ensured stability and a sound platform to launch other ventures from.
The unit-dose companies had entered the market and the experts were saying that this was going to change the way nursing homes administered medication. After analysing the concepts, I agreed with their models and ideas and involved our pharmacies in packing medications under this system.
I felt confident that by charging residents per week for this service over and above the cost of their medication, I would achieve not only professional satisfaction, but continue my profitable platform.
But with time I realised the manpower required to continue this operation, the advent of medication reviews, the time spent in administration and justification of charges, and the lost time in concentrating on my other pharmacy activities started to blur the reality of the process.
Added to this was the never-ending attack by other pharmacy predators who for no charge would supposedly provide the same service, the final attack culminating in us having to go to no charge to continue to supply.

The reality had hit home.

I was to provide packing material, pharmacy man-hours, administration, and delivery for free, relying on a 10% mark-up plus a dispensing fee for remuneration. I was now discounting the last safe component of retail pharmacy - prescriptions.

A motivation for ePharmacy was born.

Using that same computer and printer that I was dispensing Nursing home prescriptions on, the same four square metres that was used to pack unit dose medications in, and using the same pharmacy assistants I would pay wages for, I decided that we would sell our products online.
But instead of having a non-dynamic 70-bed nursing home to try and grow my market in, I now had a potential world market to sell to.
As far as having to discount price to drive traffic to the site, well that war had already started by parties down south, and in analysing my "nursing home" scenario, nothing had really changed.

EPharmacy has now found its niche although via indirect methods.

The potential of online pharmacies is large, but not without failures along the line.
I read a report from the USA that stated the online pharmacies are now feeling the pinch due to the current economic climate.
One could be concerned with this report being aligned in this industry, but what I found the most interesting is that the ones that are surviving are redefining their niche.
PlanetRx has removed health and beauty and regular prescription medications from their inventory and will now concentrate on boutique and speciality prescriptions such as drugs fighting cancer and AIDS.

They are now redefining their niche in the area of online pharmacy.
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The comments and views expressed in the above article are those of the author and no other. The author welcomes any comment and interaction that may result from this and future articles, and can be contacted directly at brett@epharmacy.com.au

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