Navneet Agarwal, Director

Sumeet Agarwal, CEO & Chairman

Renowned the world over as the ‘Pharmacy of the World’, the Indian pharma industry constitutes to over 20 percent of the global pharma supply chain and caters to around 60 percent of the global demand for vaccines. Standing true to its fame, India deferred all odds and supplied essential medical supplies and vaccines to numerous countries across the world during COVID-19 despite the diverse logistical and supply chain hassles put forth by the pandemic.

The Indian government's numerous initiatives and incentive programs such as PLI and Make in India have served as the key drivers of the sector, wherein according to IBEF, the Indian pharma industry which is currently worth $65 billion is expected to amount to $130 billion by 2030 and further grow up to $450 billion by 2047. Standing as the key pillars of strength for Indian pharmaceuticals are the pharma distribution companies that are helping them maintain a strong supply chain globally at all times. Among the myriads of distributors that are currently operational in the country, one that stands a notch higher than the rest through its unique & pioneer approach to pharmaceutical distribution is Secunderabad-based Patwari Pharma.

Holding over six decades of experience in the pharma sector, Jai Prakash Agarwal (Advisor), along with his sons Navneet Agarwal (Director) and Sumeet Agarwal (Chairman & CEO) established Patwari Pharma in 1993 with a vision to bridge the discrepancies that existed in pharma distribution, especially in terms of delivery times to the clients. As an ISO 9001:2015 certified company, Patwari Pharma has earned the reputation of being among the most reliable suppliers and distributors of a wide range of pharma products such as Brand Name Drugs, Generic Medicine, Vaccines, Medical Devices, Ayurveda Products, and Household Chemicals, to name a few. Some of its key customers include prominent retail pharmacies, clinics, hospitals, institutions, laboratories, and many others.

“Unlike today, it was extremely difficult back then for a new player to enter into market due to the harsh opposition from existing players. Despite all the difficulties, we stuck to our instincts, brainstormed day & night, and came up with a distinctive distribution model that not only helped us succeed in our business but also ensured our customers’ satisfaction. Strongly believing that We believe every Indian has the right to get access to high-quality health and human services, we aim to provide efficient pharma distribution services and ensure to put our clients at the center of every decision”, says Navneet.

Distinctive Business Model

Under the aegis of Jai Prakash, Patwari Pharma has garnered widespread recognition in the Indian pharma community for its futuristic distribution model. Initially, the company followed the usual practice of having booking boys take orders from customers every morning, but then observed that it would be 8 or 9 pm every day by the time they returned to the shop and the stock was supplied to the customers. Thus, the firm decided to let go of the booking boys and started taking orders directly from the customers who were asked to place the order the previous night. Patwari Pharma then enlisted a group of 40-50 auto drivers who used to collect the orders from the company shop early morning and deliver them to the customers right at the time they began their business for the day. As an icing on the cake, since the commissions being paid to the middlemen were removed completely, the company also started providing its customers with attractive discounts as well, thus becoming one of the most sought-after pharma distributors in the market.

“I am proud to say that we’re the pharma distribution company in India that has no middlemen. Although many organizations tried to adopt our distribution model, they were unable to fully replicate our modus operandi. To ensure timely delivery of products to our customers, we also have a backup team of auto drivers in place who are immediately assigned with the task of supplying to a particular client at the exact same time it was scheduled. This way, we made sure that our customers get the products delivered right at the beginning of their daily business hours!”, proudly says Navneet.

Customer-centricity – The Core USP

Always prioritizing customer satisfaction & experience above everything else, Patwari Pharma leaves no stone unturned to ensure that its customers get nothing but quality service and value for their money. Unlike other distributors who provide one round of supplies, the company provides at least 2-3 deliveries to each customer as per their orders. While most retail pharmacies maintain at least 10-15 days of stock and spend hefty monies on their storage and inventory management, Patwari Pharma educates its customers to only maintain 4-5 days of stock owing to its efficient supply of products and invest their money on their other critical business aspects such as technology.

Well aware of the temperature-sensitive nature of certain pharmaceutical drugs, Patwari Pharma makes sure to check the temperature of such products once they reach its warehouse and then stores them in the walk-in coolers. These cold chain products are only removed from cold storage just 30 minutes before the stock is shipped to the customers. Further, it not only packs such goods in cold packs and puts them in thermocol boxes, but also prioritizes the supply of those products so that they reach the customers in the best condition. Going a step further, the company not only has call center lines to assist its clients but also a dedicated 4-member customer service team that solves all queries/grievances through WhatsApp and even places a specific phone number on which its long-term customers can directly contact them on and get their queries solves in a timely manner.

“Last year, we invested over Rs.1 crore on the Storetrack software through which our customers are able to get realtime updates and track the status of their order through their smartphones – right from placing the order to get it delivered to their doorstep. Integrated with a mobile application, the software not only enabled customers to check their available credit balance but also clearly mentioned any goods that they were returning so that we could cross-verify them with the inputs from our auto drivers and delivery agents. As a result, we have been able to maintain a high level of trust and transparency with our customers”, Jayesh Agarwal - Director, further explains.

Future Prospects

Having started its operations in Pune one and half years back, Patwari Pharma has recently acquired 130 retail outlets of Aditya Pharmacy and 10 outlets of Mitra Pharmacy across four states. Speaking more on this Jayesh Agarwal, the Director adds, "Through this strategic move, we plan to further strengthen our distribution network and fulfill priority orders from those regions with stocks available in those outlets. Additionally, our company will also be entering Jaipur over the next 2-3 months where the warehouse is already finalized and the interiors are being worked on. Overall, our firm plans to expand its geographical footprint to 5-6 new cities over the next five years".