What Are the Qualification and Legal Requirements for Opening a Pharmacy in India for First-Time Entrepreneurs
Friends, now there is no doubt that our India has emerged as the third largest pharmaceutical market in the world in the last few years, especially after an epidemic like the Covid-19 pandemic and if we talk about its total market size in 2021, then this pharmacy industry has become $ 42 billion.
If you too have been thinking of opening a medical store for a long time, then this time can prove to be the right time to lay the foundation of a profitable pharmacy store because after the pandemic, most of the people in the country have become very conscious about their health.
Let us try to understand as a guide what are the requirements to start a pharmacy store in India.
Now there are many options available in the market to open a pharmacy, so before opening a pharmacy store it is necessary to decide which type of pharmacy business you want to start.
You can also open a standalone pharmacy.
In India it is known as retail pharmacy store pharmacy which is mostly set up in densely populated residential areas by the business owners who start this pharmaceutical business by hiring a qualified experienced pharmacist.
Opening a pharmacy franchise can also be a good option.
This is also considered a good opportunity to enter in the pharmacy sector, as now there are many pharmacy companies in India like G Lab, Dawa India and Pharmacy, which provide the facility to open a pharmacy store with minimum capital investment according to your business capacity.
You can open a pharmacy store inside the hospital.
There are some medicines which are available only at select pharmacy stores as per the doctor's prescription, so you can meet the needs of patients who want to buy such medicines by opening a pharmacy store in the hospital itself. If you want to know what is the process of opening a pharmacy store inside a hospital, then you can read the full blog article by clicking on the given link.
You can also open a township type area.
If you want, you can open your pharmacy even in remote areas like villages of the country and fulfill the medicine needs of the people there.
Before starting a pharmacy store, you must obtain some necessary licenses
Firstly you should apply for pharmacy business registration
Friends, if you want to sell medicines in India then for this you will have to apply for a pharmacy license, whether you are thinking of running a retail or wholesale medical shop, you will have to apply for the license in both the cases.
Apply for GST registration as required
If you are going to start a wholesale pharmacy by opening a big store and you think that your annual turnover can go above Rs 40 lakh, then you can definitely apply for GST registration as per the medicine sales of your business.
The requirements to obtain a license for a pharmacy business may be as follows.
Important Degree Requirements in Medicine
As per the registration requirement, if you have a degree or diploma in B. Pharma in the medical field then it is good and if for any reason you don’t have this degree or diploma then you can hire an experienced registered pharmacist at your medical shop.
Personnel requirement at drug store
As a medical store owner you should always keep in mind that while selling medicines to the customers and sharing all the health related information with them, there should always be a competent person available at the counter who can be any of the persons mentioned below.
- A person who has graduated in the medical field and has about one year of experience.
- A person who is a specially registered pharmacist.
- Or you can appoint a person at your medical store who has around four years of experience in the medical field or has an SSLC degree.
Attention friends, some of the required documents for getting a license to run a pharmacy store will be as follows.
We have listed below some of the documents that are required to open a pharmacy store in India.
- License Application Form
- Prepare a cover letter signed by the applicant describing the purpose.
- Keep the proof of fee payment ready.
- Requirement of declaration signed by the applicant.
- Keep a blueprint of the premises ready, which may be asked for at the time of applying.
- Keep ready a list of certain documents that can show the occupancy of the premises.
- If your premises is on rent, then a certificate of ownership will be required.
- Keep owner's identity card and latest passport size photo as document.
- While applying you will have to submit a proof showing that the owner has not been convicted under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
- Keep ready an affidavit from a competent person employed full-time in the medical field or a qualified pharmacist.
- If you have appointed a registered pharmacist or competent person, his/her appointment letter will be required.
Let us now talk about arranging the finances required to start a pharmacy business.
See friends, if you want to open a pharmacy store in India at a low cost, then you have to do a good research for it, which includes the location of the shop, its size, etc. However, in our opinion, if you are opening a pharmacy store, then you should have a minimum capital of Rs 15 to 20 lakh.
Procure medicines and medical equipment supplies
When you start a pharmacy business, you must be prepared to meet all the needs of your customers related to medicines and medical equipment. For this, you can stock a variety of medicines in your pharmacy so that your customer does not return empty-handed from your shop.
Be sure to buy a refrigerator for your medical store so that you can store insulin, serum, insulin and other essential medicines. If you want to increase the sales of your pharmacy store then you should keep a large range of medicines in your store and you can also encourage local hospitals and doctors to write prescriptions for medicines.
Hire staff as per requirement
If required, many pharmacy store owners look for a committed and experienced employee who mainly has knowledge about medicines and stocking medicines on time, removing expired medicines, etc. So as a medical shop owner, one can hire a person who has about 2 years of experience in the pharmaceutical field.
Invest in marketing your pharmacy store.
Given the growing competition in the pharmaceutical sector, marketing a pharmacy at the initial stage is extremely important, so create an effective marketing strategy for your pharmacy store, as advertising your business has become more important than ever. If you want to know how to advertise a pharmacy store in your local area, you can click on this link. How can I expand my medical shop business in my local area?
Conclusion:
Our India is a country with a population of more than 1040 so there is always a business opportunity for the pharmaceutical business enterprises, as there is a never ending demand for medicines in the country and in the last few requests the number of services and traders has been increased by the government.
You can open your medical store in India by following the guide given in the article above. Apart from this, if you want to get more information about all the registrations and documents required to open a pharmacy store, you can also contact the experts at Online Legal India.
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Things to keep in mind while choosing the right location for your medical store
Some powerful strategies to increase medical store income
How many medical stores can I open with one pharmacist license?
Can I start a medical store in a hospital?