Pharmacies bet on joint branding to lock out rogue firms

Owners of licensed pharmacies are betting on joint branding and purchasing of drugs to enhance their competitiveness.

Instead of operating individually as they have done for many years, they have now teamed up to establish a network by branding their outlets across the country to enable Kenyans easily recognise where they can purchase genuine drugs. The move could squeeze out illegal and unlicensed pharmacies operating in the market. The brand name “Pharmnet”, appearing together with names of registered pharmacies, is expected to distinguish this new network from other pharmacies.

A ‘Pharmnet’ branded pharmacy (PHOTO: DAVID NJAAGA/STANDARD)

Although the pharmacies will be sharing the same branding, each outlet will still be owned separately with distinct names. Pharmnet is being championed by the Kenya Pharmaceutical Association (KPA) and is supported by Private Sector Innovative Programme for Health (PSP4H) under the UK government’s Department for International Development (DFID).

“The branding initiative aims to provide correct guide to legitimate pharmacies and help them avoid the unlicensed ones that are selling substandard drugs,” said Elo Mapelu, a senior member of KPA, who is running the new initiative.

He added: “The network only sources for orginal approved products. All pharmacies that join the network are identifiable through a common logo, for ease of identification by clients.”

The Pharmacy and Poisons Board Deputy Registrar Fred Siyoi says the new initiative will enhance efforts of the Government to squeeze out illegal pharmacies and pharmacy professionals from the market. The board is the regulator of the pharmaceuticals sector.

“This move is essentially self-regulation and if implemented well, it will be successful to ensure that Kenyans access only quality and safe medicines,” he said.

In the past, Government attempts to crackdown on rogue pharmacies have not been fully successful, with the outlets often re-opening a few days after they had been shut down.

Operate illegally

On his part, CEO of Nairobi Techpharm Limited, Jesse Kirowo, said pharmacies in the network are also participating in pooled procurement for essential medicines from pre-qualified manufacturers to secure discounted prices, enabling them to compete effectively by delivering affordable medicine to their clients.

Techpharm is a wholly-owned subsidiary of KPA and is charged with running the activities of the network including branding and joint procurement of drugs. He said joint procurement enables the pharmacies selling original drugs to do so at affordable rates.

“By purchasing drugs jointly, we are able to match prices offered by the illegal pharmacies and eventually push them out of business,” he said.

The Pharmnet-branded outlets currently stand at 250 across the country. This comes amid concerns of mushrooming of illegal pharmacies that endanger the lives of unsuspecting patients through unauthorised prescription of drugs.

Many of the pharmacies operating illegally often have unqualified personnel dispensing drugs to clients.

According to KPA, there are close to 4,000 registered pharmacies in the country, while more than 5,000 operate illegally.

“Our members are on the lookout to ensure that only members can use the brand name since the quality of their medicines and personnel in their outlets are guaranteed,” he said.