Amalgamated to cash in on SA's health

Pharmaceutical company Amalgamated Healthcare is planning an aggressive move into the growing health products market, with an exclusive deal to roll out Holland & Barrett health stores in SA.

The R200m deal will see the first three stores open in Durban later this month, with another 50 planned over the next year.

Amalgamated Healthcare was formed by the merger of five wholesalers, and now includes a chain of 42 retail pharmacies.

It distributes generic medicines to both the public and private sector, including dispensing doctors.

Holland & Barrett is a highly successful UK firm that has capitalised on the world wide consumer trend towards vitamins, supplements and herbs as complementary or alternative therapies to western medicines.

Holland & Barrett operates 863 health food retail stores in the UK and Netherlands, and has annual turnover of $795m.

Amalgamated Healthcare CEO Suhail Gani said the company saw strong growth opportunities in the South African complementary and health products market, which was growing at between 11% and 13% per annum. The western pharmaceutical market, by contrast, was growing at between 6% and 8%, he said.

There had been an “explosive” growth in demand for health foods and associated products, particularly among consumers seeking products that would help prevent illness, he said. Major drug scares, such as the recall of Merck's popular painkiller Vioxx, had also prompted consumers to seek gentler alternatives, he said.

Gani was confident Holland & Barrett's products would stand up to scrutiny by local regulators, as they had already been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration and its European counterparts.

Source: Business Day

Article via I-Net-Bridge