aarogya.com
  • Home
  • Complementary Medicine
    • Ayurveda
    • Homeopathy
    • Naturopathy
    • Acupressure
    • Acupuncture
    • Aromatherapy
    • Batch Flower Remedies
    • Home Remedies
    • Massage
    • Yoga
    • Meditation
    • Reiki
    • Bodywork
    • Medical Palmistry
  • Conditions & Diseases
    • Acute Diarrheal Disease
    • Appendicitis
    • Blindness
    • Brucellosis
    • Chicken Pox
    • Conjunctivitis
    • Dysentery
    • Hookworm
    • Japanese Encephalitis
    • Lymphatic Filariasis
    • Plague
    • Rubella
    • Typhoid Fever
    • Yellow Fever
    • Allergy
    • Arthritis
    • Blood Pressure
    • Computer Health Hazards
    • Chikungunya Fever
    • Dengue
    • Guinea Worm
    • Influenza
    • Leprosy
    • Malaria
    • Poliomyelitis
    • Tetanus
    • Whooping Cough
    • Viral Hepatitis
    • Amebiasis
    • Asthma
    • Bronchitis
    • Diagnostic Tests
    • Cholera
    • Diphtheria
    • Hepatitis
    • Irritable Bowel Syndrome
    • Leptospirosis
    • Measles
    • Rabies
    • Tuberculosis
    • Yaws
  • Family Health
    • Children's Health
    • Diet & Nutrition
    • First Aid
    • Fitness
    • Humor & Trivia
    • Men's Health
    • Preventive Health
    • Senior's Health
    • Senior Citizen Corner
    • Teen’s Health
    • Vets and Pets
    • Women’s Health
  • Health Resources
    • Blood Donation
    • Career Opportunities
    • Daily Health Tips
    • Health Programs
    • Featured Hospitals
    • Medical Education
    • Health Professional's Negligence
    • Medical Tourism
    • Video Eye
    • Rural Health
    • Patients' Rights Forum
  • Insurance
    • Euthanasia
    • Health Insurance
    • Health Insurance Policies
    • Insurance Companies
    • Medical Ethics
    • Medical Jurisprudence
    • Research
    • Telemedicine
    • Compare Health Insurance
  • Sex & Sexuality
    • What is Sex & Sexuality?
    • FAQs
    • Marriage & Pregnancy
    • Sex Education
  • Support Groups
    • Addiction
    • Aids
    • Cancer
    • Epilepsy
    • Swine Flu
    • Blood Search
    • Vivah
    • Health Directory
    • Alzheimer's Disease
    • Medical Support Groups
    • Cardiology
    • Depression
    • Depression Screening Test
    • Diabetes
    • Disability
    • Kidney
    • Obesity
    • Pregnancy
    • Schizophrenia
    • Vitiligo
Aarogya.com
Marathi | Gujarati | Register | Login
  • Home
  • News and Updates
  • Year 2012
  • Drugmakers branch out to OTC niches for the edge

Drugmakers branch out to OTC niches for the edge

  • Print
Details
Hits: 5856
DNA
21 September 2012

Indian drugmakers are increasingly focusing on niche segments like testing kits and skincare.

Domestic firms such as Piramal, Lupin, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories and Mankind, which traditionally make low–cost generic medicines for wide–ranging conditions like fever, cough, hypertension and cancer, are now making kits to test blood sugar, blood pressure (BP) and pregnancy, and products to treat acne and other skin allergies.

Industry experts say firms are realising the importance of "branching out"into ancillary areas like home–testing kits, skin creams and ointments to get an edge over competitors.

Jacob Mathew, founder of investment banking firm MAPE Advisory Group, said since products in these segments are mostly sold over–the–counter (OTC), they are quite profitable.

"Margins for such products can range between 18% and 20%. Testing kits and derma products are initially launched in metros and Tier I cities and later in smaller towns. The potential for growth is tremendous,"said Mathew.

Advertising costs associated with OTC products mean that the 18–20% margins are a little less than 22–25% margins that prescription drugs command. But factors like growing awareness and affordability amongst consumers are aiding growth of testing kits and derma products.

Experts said testing kits for BP and blood sugar have huge potential in India where an estimated 16% of people over 20 years suffer from BP. Similarly, there are around 61.3 million diabetics in India, according to the International Diabetes Federation. Ankur Bharti, senior consultant on the PricewaterhouseCoopers healthcare team, said testing kits are growing by nearly 100% each year.

Agreed Kedar Rajadnye, president, consumer products division, Piramal Enterprises. The company’s products which include kits for testing pregnancy and skin lotions, currently reach 481 towns with a population of one lakh or more, he said. By 2014, Piramal wants to take its products to 800 smaller towns having a population of 50,000–60,000 each.

Aarogya news

Likewise, the dermatology segment in India (2011 sales: `3,700 crore), which includes everything from specialised conditions like psoriasis and eczema to cosmetic requirements like botox and acne, is another key area for drugmakers.

According to Amit Bangia, dermatologist at the Asian Institute of Medical Sciences, Faridabad, derma problems are on the rise due to rising stress, pollution and change in lifestyle.

Shakti Chakraborty, group president, India region formulations for Lupin, said the company would bring out products in both specialised and cosmetic segments. "Derma is growing annually at 17%. So the opportunities are tremendous."

Disclaimer: The news story on this page is the copyright of the cited publication. This has been reproduced here for visitors to review, comment on and discuss. This is in keeping with the principle of ’Fair dealing’ or ’Fair use’. Visitors may click on the publication name, in the news story, to visit the original article as it appears on the publication’s website.

0
Introducing Digital Practice for Doctors & Healthcare professionals
Swine Flu
National Award for Outstanding achievement by a Non-Professional - Tushar Sampat
Health Professional's Negligence
Health Professional's Negligence
Records of published articles in the newspapers helps common people about precautions to be taken while seeking the services from health professionals and also helps health professionals to rectify the negligence.
read more…
Specialties
Common Symptoms


Aarogya Network

aarogya.com aims to be India’s leading comprehensive health information portal. The site has sections, which cover almost all the medical specialties and give useful information on various diseases. To enhance its reach, the content is available in Indian languages too. We were the first health website to introduce online support groups. Addiction support and Epilepsy support are examples of some very active and vibrant communities.

» Click here to see all our support groups

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

 Get health related new information.

Pune Aarogya
Digital Media Dedicated to Healthcare of Punekars

Health Tools

  • Health Directory
  • Message Board
  • Health Calculators
  • Depression Screening Test

About Aarogya.com

aarogya.com aims to be India’s leading comprehensive health information portal. The site has sections, which cover almost all the medical specialties

Read more...

Suggestions

This is YOUR site, so if you have suggestions or feedback on how we can improve it for you, please let us know! We do our best to keep up!

Read more...

User Comments

“My name is Paulette Conners and I just had to send you an email thanking you since one of the pages on your site was very helpful!”

  • About Us
  • Company Profile
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Feedback
  • Disclaimer
  • Sitemap
  • Invite Your Friends

© 2017 www.aarogya.com. All Rights Reserved.