Mi Farmacita ( my little drugstore) health, at the corner of your street or town
Location
We give to margin zones, with the colaboration of minimal investment, a drugstore with doctor consultant giving cheap medical oscultation (less than $2.00 us dlls) and medicine than the average price of $4.00 dlls per type of medicine, with this investment, the owner of the drugstores has a profit every month with a return capital average of 24 months and can give more than 300 medical consultations and health medicine for more than 1000 people by month, locating in the same town or city where the marginalized population live.
About You
Location
Project Street Address
Project City
Project Province/State
Project Postal/Zip Code
Project Country
Your idea
Focus of activity
Service/process
Year the initiative began (yyyy)
2003
Positioning of your initiative on the mosaic diagram
Which of these barriers is the primary focus of your work?
Complex, expensive medicine
Which of the principles is the primary focus of your work?
Center consumers in business model
If you believe some other barrier or principle should be included in the mosaic, please describe it and how it would affect the positioning of your initiative in the mosaic:
Knowledge because the people don't know different options in generic medicine.
Doctors as prescribers don't give options to the patient they give just directions.
Doctors don't care in the economic status of his patients.
Samples of medicine given to the doctors as a test, propose to buy this brand for his cure.
Name Your Project
Mi Farmacita ( my little drugstore) health, at the corner of your street or town
Describe Your Idea
We give to margin zones, with the colaboration of minimal investment, a drugstore with doctor consultant giving cheap medical oscultation (less than $2.00 us dlls) and medicine than the average price of $4.00 dlls per type of medicine, with this investment, the owner of the drugstores has a profit every month with a return capital average of 24 months and can give more than 300 medical consultations and health medicine for more than 1000 people by month, locating in the same town or city where the marginalized population live.
Innovation
Define the innovation
We give to margin zones, with the colaboration of minimal investment, a drugstore with doctor consultant giving cheap medical oscultation (less than $2.00 us dlls) and medicine than the average price of $4.00 dlls per type of medicine, with this investment, the owner of the drugstores has a profit every month with a return capital average of 24 months and can give more than 300 medical consultations and health medicine for more than 1000 people by month, locating in the same town or city where the marginalized population live.
Context for Disruption:
As innovations we have 3 principal ways to give it: one of them is offering to the emmigrate people all over the world that invest in his native town and country buying our franchise, giving this project to his own relatives, and the franchise office will educate them and give capacity for all the pre-operation and during his operation not matter the time that can be at the business, when they invest in one drugstore he will give one way to have this family an income for living. Second, this same new business family, will bring a doctor, for work at the next door of mi farmacita, this doctor will give attention for more than 300 people of the town by month minimum.The third innovation will be to give this marginalized population access to the internet (because all the mi farmacita has the service)renting the access, in some places give water to refill bottles, and takes milk and other products and services less than the regular prices of the town, because we give the same price no matter the place where mi farmacita is installed. The last and best innovation will be a new card (tarjeta inteligente de salud) where the people will have all the medical history, and all the treatment, and medicines that was using and when they have to travel to another town for work or in any case they will have all the information in this card, giving to the doctors more efficient and fast access to his his or her historical medial record.
Delivery Model
The operational model was creating to having partnership with one and the biggest distributor in Mexico this company was the logistical that gives the medicine to those marginal places, and the second one was one of the most biggest laboratories in Mexico that will give the best and better price with the condition to transmit direct to this exclusive people to have the same discount price that if they will go to a biggest drugstore chain, also now we hare including this model with the government medical bases "SEGURO POPULAR" where this mi farmacita will give medicine to the people that has a prescription for the doctor of the general hospital where the government was the owner, this mechanism includes to give without payment the medicine to the people that was integrate in this SEGURO POPULAR, they pay a few money by month and all theire family recives this medical benefits, also in the near future this mi farmacitas will have the process to register new families to this government program.
Key Operational Partnerships
The KEY operational its: the distributor he would give us the logistic to have the medicine at any place that mi farmacita was, the laboratory to give the best price for social purpose, the government giving access to the medical service that they provide and the new one was the donation of the firs mi farmacita to "FUNDACION SALUD Y VIDA" at Celaya Guanajuato Mexico, this foundation gives food for more than 90000 people every day, we talk with them and now they will offer also a medical service and medicines to his population, with this new project we want that the other foundations can accept it as a model of benefit to the marginal communities and give not just food also medicine to have in the future better and healthy population, if they do it, this type of people will be strong and healthy to go, to have a place to have a job and give more benefits to his own family.
Impact
Financial Model
We charge 3.5% of the total sales of the mi farmacita, and we return not less than 1.5% of this same money in publicity, every month constant, where we give more than 6 products (every month different) with high discount and offer, all this as a comic magazine, making happy with colors and every month motive, as a mothers day, fathers day, Christmas, etc. and giving always, some medical benefit as "check your blood pressure free" " this month free consultation to kids" other month to mothers etc. Also in case that some one want o have his own mi farmacita and doesn't have all the money we give them some finance time of 20 month without interest... for the 50% of the franchise price. At the start this group of partnership, financed 100% of the initial project they invest in everything, the model, the manuals, all the business plan, finishing this process we start selling the franchise project with excellent results, and also we have some interesting people to invest in this project, ones with buying the places or land and built his local for mi farmacita, others with donations as the "SALUD Y VIDA FOUNDATION" and we are looking for a great support to give direct to the marginal zones access to a financial aid, but not with money, direct better with mi farmacita, and education that can give better health matter of lives.
What is your annual operating budget?
700k
What are your current sources of revenue? (please list any sources that are foundation grants)
Franchise fee and the royalties
Effectiveness
We give to more than 400 people per month medical atention, and health consultation, this gives benefits to his family and community, also we attend more than 600 epople at the drugstore, who buy medicine or buy any other services that we offer as internet, or make a long distance call to his/her relatives, or just recharge his mobile phone with minutes, we try not just give them health culture, we try to give them more communication, more clean living concepts, and with all around they can have a better life, we also give them vitamins to prevent more illnesses.
Which element of the program proved itself most effective?
First, the first quality doctor at their attention, second access to services that by their own can't affort it, products with better prices that if they travel to a big chain store, and quick and better recuperation
Number of clients in the last year?
386,000 in 2006 and pwr goal for this 2007 it's 700000.
What is the potential demand?
Every mi farmacita has more than 12,000 customers by year and more than 3600 medical consultants, the sales can be more than $120,000.00 dlls per year giving benefit for more than $40,000 dlls in discounts to the public, and has a profit of $24,000 dlls a year.
Scaling up Strategy
Now we have 68 mi farmacitas, at the end of 2007 we will be 100 and for 2008 we will be around 200 at the end of the year just in Mexico and the model can be exportable to any other country
Stage of the initiative:
1
Expansion plan:
Every Mi Farmacita has an average of total invest of $45000 dlls, this money can be returned in an average of 24 month period, this means that the mi farmacita need a profit of $1875 dlls per month, in the middle, the owner can have more than $500 dlls of salary, the doctor $1000 dlls, and the secon dof the mi farmacita around $400 dlls, this give them a regular salary during this first two years, at the end of this period, when they finish having the original amount ( payed or keeping on savings) they will star earning more than $2000 dlls every month, the average of the emmigrate people at the states earn around $2500 per month and for this money they have to send $500 dlls every month at origin home, with all this means, that this same emmigrate people can return without a problem to his original town and have a great opportunity of bussines with Mi Farmacita as a owner of one.
Origin of the Initiative
Enrique F., lawyer, as a first eduation, living at the border of Mexico- US, looking the marginal market when the people that don't have money cross the border from USA to Mexico looking for cheaper medicine, GENERIC traveling to Mexico and returning with theire medicine that they need maybe for a month dosis, and looking this, hi start working to bring it to sale it at they own drugstores, and when look to the marginal zones, he create an idea to give them cheap medicine and better medical services if the franchise hire a doctor and gives the enough financial aid to create the project.
Then Enrique talk with laboratories, suppliers to offer tehm the opportunity to participate at this project and, they gives me the challange to develop all the business model and start it, woth the franchise model.
This Entry is about (Issues)
Sustainability
What are your two main challenges to finance the growth of your initiative
About 8 millions dollars in order to increase the financement for 400 Farmacitas, with this we can give to others financing, and suport to open in all the country this type of health business, each mi farmacita, requiere around $20,000.00 dlls of loan, becasue the avergae of the people consultin g about the franchise model, has in average, $25,000.00 dlls in savings and they wan to invest in a business model and they like Mi Farmacita becasue its a good business and also can be socially responsable helping people with his health..
How did you hear about this contest and what is your main incentive to participate?
An invitation throught an email, the motivation is to be able to generate in Mexico better opportunities for the population in mexico. In mexico 80% of the population are in poverty status. With Mi Farmacita we can give from, jobs, health recources and cheaper medication.
The Story
Do you have an annual financial statement?
Since the business is new and we began in 2003, we projected from the Farmacita number 300 all of the investment would be recovered. Right now we currently have 68 Farmacies.
Yes we have financial statments from 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006, unfortunatly with no profit yet becasue we are on growing status, we will have a profit ending 2008, or less if we can have a fastgowing process.
Do you currently have an annual financial statement that tracks profit/loss?
2007 $1'000,000.00 dlls can finance at 50 new entrepeneurs opening 50 MI FARMACITAS total 130
2008 $3'000,000.00 dlls Can finance at 175 with this we can finish 2008 with more than 305
2009 $4'000,000.00 dlls can finance 300 mi farmacitas growing the chain to more than 580
2010 -$2'000,000.00 dlls can be pay it back to return part of the original financing
2011 -$3'000,000.00 dlls pay it back
2012 -$3'000,000.00 dlls final payment
Please describe the amount (and/or type) of funding you need to implement your initiative, at year 1 and at year 5.
- Login to post new content in this forum.
Comments
This is an interesting approach to make healthcare and medicines available to people who cannot afford them.
If I understand correctly, the pharmaceutical distributors offer their best discounts to Mi Farmacita, who sell the medicines to patients at the lowest possible cost. If that is correct, I would like to understand the financials in more detail:
- How much do the patients pay for medicines? (For example a typical course of antibiotics, like amoxicillin)
- How does that compare to the price they would have to pay at a regular pharmacy?
- What is the retail margin kept by Mi Farmacita?
- Do the typical patients have enough upfront cash to pay for the entire treatment or does Mi Farmacita deliver the treatment one day at a time, to allow the patients to pay in small increments?
Again, if I am not mistaken, Mi Farmacita can also deliver medicines prescribed at government hospitals (presumably when the hospital pharmacy is out of stock?).
- Who pays for these medicines? The patient, the hospital, the social security system?
- Or do the patients pay a monthly contribution (a sort of insurance fee) to Mi Farmacita to be entitled to receiving medicines? If so, how much?
Many thanks and good luck!
Nora El Goulli
Medicines for Roatan
Honduras
Gracias Nora and I will aswer it over your same questions:
- How much do the patients pay for medicines? (For example a typical course of antibiotics, like amoxicillin)
amoxicillin 500mg with 12 pills $4.23dlls 500mg susp(liquid) $6.25
- How does that compare to the price they would have to pay at a regular pharmacy?
Between 40% to 60% less becasue everything at mi farmacita has a discount in medicine we are interesting in volumen.
- What is the retail margin kept by Mi Farmacita?
48% before your operation cost and taxes and the average are around 22% before taxes.
- Do the typical patients have enough upfront cash to pay for the entire treatment or does Mi Farmacita deliver the treatment one day at a time, to allow the patients to pay in small increments?
Tehy buy it box by box if the need 90 days treatment and the bos has for a weekm they buy it week by week, they dodn;t buy all complete, and doesn;t have many incrments of prices during this period, we have not much this movemnts in mexico with prices.
Again, if I am not mistaken, Mi Farmacita can also deliver medicines prescribed at government hospitals (presumably when the hospital pharmacy is out of stock?).
Yes we can deliver if the social security accept it, but for the moment thay don;t accept it, but when they put of sotck the same people goes out to find where they can buy cheap the same medicine and if we are located near theire home they can find it ther and cheap price.
- Who pays for these medicines? The patient, the hospital, the social security system?
- Or do the patients pay a monthly contribution (a sort of insurance fee) to Mi Farmacita to be entitled to receiving medicines? If so, how much?
Always the patient, here the social security have a new project that call SEGURO POPULAR with the idea that the pharmacy can give the medicine to the patient with theure prescription and the seguro popular pays to the pharmacy, but its for the momento just a project, nothing final.
Thanks for your questions and hope I was clrearly enought and you rhave to right answers.
my best regards
Thanks for your time
Guillermo Krasovsky
www.mifarmacita.com
+52-664-6817143
Thank you Guillermo for your response.A 40-60% discount is a significant achievement!
My impression is that at those prices, you are reaching people with a lower income, but not the extremely poor.We are trying to improve access to basic medicines for the extremely poor in the Bay islands of Honduras. In Honduras, the price ranges are similar: at a private pharmacy, a 12 pill course of 500mg amoxicillin would cost around $5. But that is way out of reach for the average patient: 51% of the population lives with under $2/day, 25% with under $1/day.
Private pharmacies try to help by selling the treatment by the day or by the pill. That brings the daily cost to around $1/day. Still out of reach for most patients.The affordable cost for them is at most $0.10 a day, which is the hospital prescription fee. In case of life or death situation, they will borrow, cut the food ration for the entire household and take the children out of school to earn money in the street to be able to buy at $1/day...
Are you aware that in Bangladesh, Grameen villagers have access to basic medical care and medicines for an annual contribution of around $3/person? The contribution is collected in small increments (weekly I believe) through the Grameen network. I wonder how they make the numbers work!
Hi Again, and I will try to help giving this idea, that we are workiing now on it.
Why the pharmacy can't give credit? they have maybe 30 dyas to pay to the supplier isn't? if they so, they can make a credit program, this credit program can give all the treatment to the person who need it ant htey can pay it, by day or by week, maybe you have to give the same last sample, and they can pay maybe .50Cents a day, this can help them to have all the treatment, and thay pay it in 10 days, with this everybody can help to have a healthy person that can works better becasue if he/she's seek can't do it or they doesn;t give all the work that they can do, doing this seekness to have part time work then they recive part time salary, and nobody wins, if the pharmacy can give this credit and make some publcity of this new program, they will have a lot of customers, of course maybe some of this customers will not pay, but if they do that, you can cut the credit to them and all his relatives, and this will enforce them to pay day by day or by week, don;t you think that?
If the people its poor and nobody gives them credit imagine the feeling that theay will have if some one beleive in them and try to help them? they will be always thanksful and never will leave this pharmacy in all his life, and of course will promote this pharmacy to all his family and everybody wins... isn't?
It's just and idea I don't know if they can do it and if the people can accet this or if the regulations can or canot do it, but better is talk and try to give something that can works.
Have a great weekend and excelent father's day.
Thanks for your time
Guillermo Krasovsky
www.mifarmacita.com
+52-664-6817143
Comments
This is an interesting approach to make healthcare and medicines available to people who cannot afford them.
If I understand correctly, the pharmaceutical distributors offer their best discounts to Mi Farmacita, who sell the medicines to patients at the lowest possible cost. If that is correct, I would like to understand the financials in more detail:
- How much do the patients pay for medicines? (For example a typical course of antibiotics, like amoxicillin)
- How does that compare to the price they would have to pay at a regular pharmacy?
- What is the retail margin kept by Mi Farmacita?
- Do the typical patients have enough upfront cash to pay for the entire treatment or does Mi Farmacita deliver the treatment one day at a time, to allow the patients to pay in small increments?
Again, if I am not mistaken, Mi Farmacita can also deliver medicines prescribed at government hospitals (presumably when the hospital pharmacy is out of stock?).
- Who pays for these medicines? The patient, the hospital, the social security system?
- Or do the patients pay a monthly contribution (a sort of insurance fee) to Mi Farmacita to be entitled to receiving medicines? If so, how much?
Many thanks and good luck!
Nora El Goulli
Medicines for Roatan
Honduras
Gracias Nora and I will aswer it over your same questions:
- How much do the patients pay for medicines? (For example a typical course of antibiotics, like amoxicillin)
amoxicillin 500mg with 12 pills $4.23dlls 500mg susp(liquid) $6.25
- How does that compare to the price they would have to pay at a regular pharmacy?
Between 40% to 60% less becasue everything at mi farmacita has a discount in medicine we are interesting in volumen.
- What is the retail margin kept by Mi Farmacita?
48% before your operation cost and taxes and the average are around 22% before taxes.
- Do the typical patients have enough upfront cash to pay for the entire treatment or does Mi Farmacita deliver the treatment one day at a time, to allow the patients to pay in small increments?
Tehy buy it box by box if the need 90 days treatment and the bos has for a weekm they buy it week by week, they dodn;t buy all complete, and doesn;t have many incrments of prices during this period, we have not much this movemnts in mexico with prices.
Again, if I am not mistaken, Mi Farmacita can also deliver medicines prescribed at government hospitals (presumably when the hospital pharmacy is out of stock?).
Yes we can deliver if the social security accept it, but for the moment thay don;t accept it, but when they put of sotck the same people goes out to find where they can buy cheap the same medicine and if we are located near theire home they can find it ther and cheap price.
- Who pays for these medicines? The patient, the hospital, the social security system?
- Or do the patients pay a monthly contribution (a sort of insurance fee) to Mi Farmacita to be entitled to receiving medicines? If so, how much?
Always the patient, here the social security have a new project that call SEGURO POPULAR with the idea that the pharmacy can give the medicine to the patient with theure prescription and the seguro popular pays to the pharmacy, but its for the momento just a project, nothing final.
Thanks for your questions and hope I was clrearly enought and you rhave to right answers.
my best regards
Thanks for your time
Guillermo Krasovsky
www.mifarmacita.com
+52-664-6817143
Thank you Guillermo for your response.A 40-60% discount is a significant achievement!
My impression is that at those prices, you are reaching people with a lower income, but not the extremely poor.We are trying to improve access to basic medicines for the extremely poor in the Bay islands of Honduras. In Honduras, the price ranges are similar: at a private pharmacy, a 12 pill course of 500mg amoxicillin would cost around $5. But that is way out of reach for the average patient: 51% of the population lives with under $2/day, 25% with under $1/day.
Private pharmacies try to help by selling the treatment by the day or by the pill. That brings the daily cost to around $1/day. Still out of reach for most patients.The affordable cost for them is at most $0.10 a day, which is the hospital prescription fee. In case of life or death situation, they will borrow, cut the food ration for the entire household and take the children out of school to earn money in the street to be able to buy at $1/day...
Are you aware that in Bangladesh, Grameen villagers have access to basic medical care and medicines for an annual contribution of around $3/person? The contribution is collected in small increments (weekly I believe) through the Grameen network. I wonder how they make the numbers work!
Hi Again, and I will try to help giving this idea, that we are workiing now on it.
Why the pharmacy can't give credit? they have maybe 30 dyas to pay to the supplier isn't? if they so, they can make a credit program, this credit program can give all the treatment to the person who need it ant htey can pay it, by day or by week, maybe you have to give the same last sample, and they can pay maybe .50Cents a day, this can help them to have all the treatment, and thay pay it in 10 days, with this everybody can help to have a healthy person that can works better becasue if he/she's seek can't do it or they doesn;t give all the work that they can do, doing this seekness to have part time work then they recive part time salary, and nobody wins, if the pharmacy can give this credit and make some publcity of this new program, they will have a lot of customers, of course maybe some of this customers will not pay, but if they do that, you can cut the credit to them and all his relatives, and this will enforce them to pay day by day or by week, don;t you think that?
If the people its poor and nobody gives them credit imagine the feeling that theay will have if some one beleive in them and try to help them? they will be always thanksful and never will leave this pharmacy in all his life, and of course will promote this pharmacy to all his family and everybody wins... isn't?
It's just and idea I don't know if they can do it and if the people can accet this or if the regulations can or canot do it, but better is talk and try to give something that can works.
Have a great weekend and excelent father's day.
Thanks for your time
Guillermo Krasovsky
www.mifarmacita.com
+52-664-6817143