‘Forti’fication in RetailWORLD

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Combine FMCG & healthcare biz. What do you get? A retailer’s dream come true!

India’s retail fire continues to burn. And even as the spat between brand-doctor and corporate hospital, Escorts has ended with cardiologist Naresh Trehan’s exit from the Group, the flagship brand Fortis Healthcare continues to forge ahead with its retail ambitions. The format? Blend personal care and medicines with retail and let the magic work. The fresh brand in their stable? ‘Fortis HealthWorld’, and with an investment of Rs.800 crore, the company’s gungho on charting out a pan India presence via 1,000 stores by 2011. In March 2007, the company first rolled out its tenth round the clock health store in the NCR. Considering that the health and well-being market is estimated to fetch a staggering $24 billion annually; and the personal care segment is recording sustained double digit growths too, little wonder that even before Fortis came on the scene, other healthcare companies (98.4 degree, Health Glow, Life Spring and more recently Dabur) were already reaping rich rewards. Ashish Kirpal Pundit, CEO, Fortis HealthWorld, talked forthrightly to 4Ps B&M about competition, the present and the future. Excerpts from the interview:

Many big players are already into pharmacies. What is your big differentiation and winning point?
Yes! There are many players in the reckoning, but none have provided a complete range of medicines. With Fortis HealthWorld, we provide holistic medicines, health food required for certain diseases, doctor’s consultation (OPD), OTC drugs, and even Ayurvedic and Homeopathic medicines. We are a complete one stop medicine shop and that’s where we are different from others.

But even Dabur claims a similar USP and they also ventured into retail at the same time as you?
We have our hospitals and we are in touch with top doctors and specialists (unlike Dabur?). So even if you don’t need any medicine, but instead need an appointment with certain doctors, we can organize that just as easily. We are working to assist people round the clock and are available even if they want to be admitted in any of our hospitals in an emergency situation. And of course, SRL Ranbaxy, would be another clear distinguisher, which enables us to house even diagnostic centres within the premises of our stores.

Why did you prefer to create a separate company for your retail foray?
Fortis HealthCare is into hospitals and it was necessary to have a separate company, as the venture is totally different from hospitals. At the same time we wanted to be more focused, so we created a new brand. In February 2007 we listed it, as we are planning for many acquisitions.

You will have both FMCG products and drugs in your stores. Which will have a bigger share of the pie?
No, our focus is purely into health and that’s what Ranbaxy is known for. We might have personal care but it’s got to have a direct link to health. Like if it’s toothpaste it will definitely enhance your health. And we are more into drugs and medicines. We are testing the option of tying up exclusively with some life saving drug-manufacturing companies abroad. We are a health store addressing the daily health related needs, for this reason we are trying to set up our stores in the heart of every locality.

What’s next?
We will be leveraging our Group’s strength and will soon have a presence in 400 small towns and cities, apart from metros.

Edit bureau: Angshuman Paul

For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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