An insightful article by Forbes India on the challenges and opportunities of online pharmacies and healthtech platforms in India.
Are Discounts Enough? Ankur Bisen Explains the Challenges of Online Pharmacies
An insightful article by Forbes India on the challenges and opportunities of online pharmacies and healthtech platforms in India. The article highlights how the online players are struggling to make profits and compete with the offline chemists, who have a strong presence and loyal customer base in the top cities.
Among the experts quoted in the article is Ankur Bisen, senior partner and head (retail, consumer products and food), at Technopak. He explains why the online pharmacies started with a wrong diagnosis: “Consumers don’t buy medicines because of discounts.”
He also points out the lack of trust and convenience factors that hinder the adoption of online pharmacies: “There was never any broken chain in medicine delivery in the top cities. The trust factor was always there. And so was convenience.”
The article also explores how the online players are trying to differentiate themselves by offering value-added services such as teleconsultation, diagnostics, wellness, etc. However, these services also come with their own challenges such as regulatory hurdles, quality issues, and high customer acquisition costs.
The article concludes by suggesting that the online players need to focus on creating a unique value proposition that can appeal to the customers beyond discounts and convenience.
