Starting your own business is always a courageous and life-changing experience when you have global companies as competitors around you. The independent pharmacy business can be especially daunting and competitive. As the global pharmacy industry was valued at about 1.27 trillion U.S. dollars at the end of 2020. If you have experience working in a pharmacy, you will certainly have a good idea about running a pharmacy business, while a person that has worked in a hospital setting might have more things to learn before opening a pharmacy.
Get advice from professionals
Coming up with a good business plan is not necessarily a skill you will learn while studying for your degree in pharmacology. Try asking for advice on opening a pharmacy from other pharmacy business owners. They will be willing to share at least something. If you don’t have experience working in a pharmacy. The information you get from the workers can prove essential in the early stages of business ownership.
The other valuable source would be agencies and individual professionals that help others develop their business plans. As your business plan can help you with legalities, getting contracts with suppliers, and lastly developing your marketing strategy, it is worthy of being invested in.
Research the local market
While developing your business plan, your vision was quite important in many matters. Independent pharmacies more often than not heavily depend on their immediate neighbourhood. The identity you want to give to your business will correspond to your ideal client or a group of people whom you want to develop a service for. This group in the marketing is called the target market. Ideally, your customers are your neighbours so you should research what is it that they would need from a local pharmacy. Don’t be afraid to deep dive into their issues. As your customers really do come first in the pharmacy business, as their health and wellbeing are in question.
Choose location carefully
As explained previously, the success of your business heavily depends on the connection between your vision and your client’s needs. This is why your location is so important – if your desired neighbourhood is keener on the holistic approach, and you are all about modern medicine, you might need to look for another location. Additionally, look for spots where the parking lot is near, and where you see higher traffic during working hours. You need to be available and approachable to your clients, so take even a ramp or one level into account when looking for a space.
License is a must
Each new business has to meet certain standards and acquire a few licenses to be able to open and work. However, pharmacies have an additional special set of licenses, like standard pharmacy license, permit to sell medications and medical equipment, and others. Take into account that you as well as your employees working at the counter will also need licenses. The most important in Australia is the registration at the Pharmacy Board of Australia. Furthermore, licenses often need to be renewed, and you always must beware of the dates to avoid getting into an issue.
Invest in the storage and tech
The obvious is that you need a specific space and storage that your customers will not be able to enter. Many shelves and home temperature is what works just fine for multiple pills and retail inventory like cosmetics and cleaning supplies. However, many different medications do require specific care for long-term storage. This is why you will need additional equipment like a refrigerator and an even more specific vaccine refrigerator that is carefully made, according to pharmaceutical standards.
Don’t skimp on technology that you will use every day. Invest in a good computer, phone, document scanner, printing machine, and bar code scanner to ensure your business runs smoothly. You will also most likely need a thermal scanner to print out labels and tags.
Employees are not your friends
The faces of your business are the people your clients will meet, talk to and share their health issues with. Your employees, therefore, must be met with the utmost respect, as well as give a proper service to your clients. You can easily check what are the usual payments that pharmacists receive, although it is good to plan for the future and give space for your employees to grow. Do not think about your customers and your account at the end of each month. Pay attention to giving bonuses to your best employees and possibilities to delegate them additional responsibilities. They do start from customer service, but there are procurement, monthly sales, marketing, and other additional things they can learn with you.
Thorough marketing plan
The way you approach your customers will set you apart from your competitors. To most people, a pharmacy is a pharmacy, and apart from the convenience of the location, they won’t think about anything else. However, this all changes when the first-time customer is your neighbour. The way you approach, talk and give advice can already be the reason your neighbour won’t come to any pharmacist if it is not you. Show respect for the trust people give you!
It is also good to offer discounts, gift cards for retail inventory, or packages of vitamins for different profiles (children, men, women, pregnant women, old people, vitamins for bones or brain strength, etc.). You should fill your social media account with promotional activities. Maybe answer common questions, as well as a phone number that is always available.
Don’t expect money fast
You cannot expect to get back all of your investments in the first 3-6 months and don’t expect sales off the roof until you get recognized locally. It is a big deal to lower your expectations to gain more. People need time to develop their habits, and they also need time to develop trust. You and your employees should be available to hear out their health issues and give them advice on how to deal with them. Customer service is at the base of your job and never forget that.