In a market of over 220m people, and a limited public healthcare spending of only 1.2% of GDP, where approximately 55% of all healthcare spending is out-of-pocket, people generally resort to medicine as a means to reduce their suffering instead of spending on unaffordable medical procedures.
However, this too will only continue to remain possible if the accessibility of affordable and authentic medicines is ensured. And this precisely is what MedznMore is all about. The startup aims to make health and wellness products available in all corners of the country.
The domestic market is riddled with counterfeit medicine, according to reports 25 to 40% of all medicine dispensed is either fake or has lost efficacy.
What is MedznMore?
Founded back in late 2020 by Asad Khan, Saad Khawar, and Babar Lakhani, MedznMore is a B2X pharma delivery platform that aims to provide a solution to the decade-long problems pertaining to the purchase of medicines and other wellness products.
Currently, the startup is catering to both business-to-business (B2B) as well as business-to-consumer (B2C) channels through TezMedz and Tabiyat.pk.
Background of Founders
Asad Khan
Asad is a Duke University alumnus who left his position as General Manager at Careem in 2020 to focus on making healthcare more accessible and affordable for the masses.
He is a seasoned healthcare industry professional with over ten years of experience in leading healthcare companies in the US and Europe. He has also served as the Country Manager in the United Kingdom and Ireland for IQVIA in London.
Saad Khawar
Saad is a LUMS alumnus and completed his Bachelor’s in Computer Science back in 2015.
He started his professional journey as Business Development Officer at Zameen.com. Later, he joined Dawaai as a Product and BI specialist. Then in 2020, he left his full-time job at Dawaai and launched MedznMore with his colleagues.
Babar Lakhani
Babar completed his Bachelor’s from Bentley University in Finance. After undergrad, he went for an MBA from Brandeis University.
He started his career back in 1999 as a Research Analyst. He has worked with many national and international companies in different capacities. In 2009, he founded Lacksons Investments Limited, and in 2020, joined MedznMore as a co-founder.
Why MedznMore?
MEDZnMORE partners with pharmaceutical companies and their authorized distributors across Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, where it operates through a network of warehouses, to deliver genuine products, and the best-in-class experience, to patients and retail pharmacies.
The company has seen phenomenal traction and according to previous stats has seen a growth of ~42% month over month for the past 12 months. Presently, the startup now controls over 1% of the Pakistani pharma market and delivers over 100,000 products from its 7 cold-chain enabled warehouses located across Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad every day.
In a statement, Asad Khan, CEO MEDZnMORE said:
Ensuring the accessibility of affordable and authentic medicines is essential. At MEDZnMORE our aim is to make health and wellness products available in all corners of the country.
Funding Raised
Seed Round: Raised $2.6 million
In September 2020, the Karachi-based health-tech startup raised $2.6 million in a seed round for its medicines and healthcare product delivery operations. This seed round was believed to be the country’s largest seed round at the time.
MedznMore, which began operations in August 2020, closed the seed round with participation from a syndicate of seasoned local and international angel investors, the company said in a statement.
Pre-Series A Round: Raised $11.5 million
In May 2022, the startup raised $11.5 mn in Pre-Series A funding from a series of investors including:
- Integra Partners
- Nunc Gestion
- Sturgeon Capital
- Alta Semper
- AlTouq Group
- ACE & Company
- Key Family Partners
- Reflect Ventures
- Atlas Asset Management
As well as, a few angel investors who are closely aligned with MEDZnMORE’s mission to transform and uplift the development curve of healthcare in Pakistan.
Future Plans
At present, the company has seven cold chain-enabled warehouses in three cities and plans to expand to a new city each month in 2022, enhancing its presence to 9 cities by the end of the year. The startup delivers over 100,000 products from its warehouses each day.
The startup’s Chief Executive Officer Asad Khan said in an interview:
By the end of this year, we expect to be in seven to eight new cities. A lot of this capital will be spent on these cities to build warehouses, have omni-channel stores, staff, and inventory.
While the startup’s future plans do sound promising, with the current global economic recession putting an end to some of the big names like Airlift, only time will tell whether the startup lives up to its promise.
