In India, the business of pharmacy store is an excellent business to start as the profit margin is quite high. The positive thing about the medical business is that it does not easily get affected by the economic crisis. However, if a proper analysis is not conducted before starting your business, it may not do as well as expected.

 

Here are some of the essential requirements that you would need to fulfil:

1. B Pharm / M Pharm certificates and must register your pharmacy by obtaining a ‘Pharmacy license’.
2. Decide on your investments.
3. Develop a network with Doctor and/or the Hospital so that you can "informally tie-up" with them; this is the easiest way to directly access the customer base.
4. Area required is: minimum of 10 square meters with concrete roof and cemented walls.
5. Most importantly, registration

The Indian Pharmacy Act of 1948 governs the registration of a pharmacy. It states that a pharmacist must register all his particulars with the state government through an official gazette. After the submission, a registration tribunal decides on the registration. Usually, hospital, chain and township pharmacies are setups under private limited companies whereas standalone pharmacies are set up under proprietorship or partnership constitution. Presently, Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) constitution has gained immense popularity among standalone pharmacists as it promotes the rights of partners, unlike a partnership constitution.

 

There are different types in the medical shop, at the very initial stage you need to select a variety of medical shop which you are looking for, the types are mentioned below:

1. Hospital Pharmacy or a Medicine Shop - Hospital pharmacies are usually within the premises of a hospital. They provide medications for hospitalised patients only and are not retail establishments.
2. Standalone Pharmacy/Community Pharmacy - The most common set-up which includes all the pharmacies that are present in a residential area.
3. Township Pharmacy - Pharmacy set-up in a township is acknowledged as the township pharmacy.
4. Chain Pharmacy - Chain pharmacies are usually present in malls