Home > Health > View from the Top

Empowering the Supply Chain

Pablo Escandón - Nadro
President and CEO

STORY INLINE POST

Wed, 09/05/2018 - 09:30

share it

Q: What are Nadro’s priorities and what industry trends is it following?

A: We are trying to highlight the importance of distribution in the supply chain. In Mexico, the pharmaceutical sector works with nearly 8,500 Stock Keeping Units (SKU) and about 22,000 locations. Only a specialized distributor like us considers the three complex challenges facing the sector today. The first is the collection of demands. We have an electronic system through which pharmacy chains communicate their needs and we also have 1,200 brand representatives who visit pharmacies and identify their demands. Second is storage and inventory management. One of our main challenges is to have regional inventories that can meet national demand. We have 14 distribution and storage centers and a central warehouse that manages the inventory for the rest. The third challenge is accountability. We help 22,000 pharmacies that lack financial capacity by providing credit at no cost.

Q: One of the major challenges pharmacies face is dispensing. How is Nadro addressing this?

A: There is a relationship between the volume of operations at a pharmacy and the number of SKUs it must have to provide adequate service. We manage 8,500 SKUs and can assist all types of pharmacies. We serve the entire pharmacy segment in Mexico.

Q: What are the benefits of systems like Círculo de la Salud (Health Circle) for dispensing products?

A: This program is a virtual system that offers solutions for the responsible and ethical dispensation of products. We also have Círculo de la Salud Gold, a niche of 1,600 pharmacies that operate at a more sophisticated level. We believe that this program has been a complete success because it respects the brands of manufacturers and helps workers understand that they are providing a public service.

Q: How does Nadro contribute to the improvement of customer services at pharmacies?

A: We offer a program called Invenadro that trains pharmacy workers to manage inventory. There are 1,400 pharmacies using it and we expect to reach 5,000 pharmacies soon. We also offer a simple purchasing mechanism that helps pharmacies make an efficient purchase.

Q: How do you keep track of buying trends?

A: Big Data analysis allows us to identify the market’s direction. Our inventory management system enables us to respond quickly to the changing needs in each region. Every warehouse in Tijuana, Culiacan and Veracruz are locally responding to the weather, the season and the epidemiology, among other factors. One of the biggest advantages of our system is its ability to follow the market.

Q: How does the company contribute to healthcare in Mexico?

A: We are making a significant investment in electronic systems and we are in the process of digitalization to offer services with more precision and security in the shortest possible time. We are specialized in drugs, but in general we are specialized in distributing any product that a pharmacy needs. We are experiencing a growth in demand for OTCs, hygiene and beauty products, so we are expanding our presence in rural areas.

The population is also aging quickly, which represents a change in the needs of those older than 60 years. This pushes us to open new business lines, like the distribution of medical devices. There is a great need for this service, but we need an organizational structure for the provision of devices.

Q: Are there enough companies able to meet the distribution and dispensation needs of pharmacies across the country?

A: There are many small and medium-sized companies, but they lack the ability to support the entire system. We are waiting for the government to open the market because there have been budgets cuts.

You May Like

Most popular

Newsletter