Industrialist Ratan Tata often champions social causes, and a few years ago, he became interested in Arjun Deshpande’s Mumbai-based startup idea.
Deshpande’s TED talk which highlighted how he aimed to make medicines more affordable for the general public went viral and caught Tata’s attention.
Tata has invested an undisclosed amount in the startup ‘Generic Aadhaar’ which purchases generic quality medicines from government-approved manufacturing units and sells them at prices 80 percent lower than the market.
Giving an insight into how his company works, Arjun says, “Pharmaceuticals in India put a brand name on generic medicines and sell at high prices. The customers bear the extra cost of branding or marketing.”
Thus, he says, his company sell generic medicines directly to retailers who directly sell them to the end customer under their brand.
Being new in the market and considering his age, the initial days were hard. But, once he convinced the manufacturers to procure the drugs directly, he physically visited pharmacies in his area.
He gradually brought stores under his brand and formally launched the company in April 2019.
Today, Generic Aadhaar has tied up with four manufacturers and has 30 outlets spread across Mumbai, Thane, Bengaluru and Odisha.
“The profit-sharing model has raised revenue of the stores by 20 percent and sales have doubled. Meanwhile, customers are paying 80 percent lesser,” he adds.
By gaining credibility in the market and support from Tata, Arjun is currently working on expanding the company across India and increasing the number of outlets to 200.