Hill & Knowlton International Belgium,
118, Avenue de Cortenbergh box 8,
B-1000 Brussels
Tel. +32 2 737 9500
http://www.hillandknowlton.be
In light of the upcoming changes, major players have started to prepare, particularly with a view to the sizeable German market. With an estimated annual sales value of EUR 35 billion and the promise of high returns, Germany, as the world’s third largest market for pharmaceuticals, has turned into a testing ground for wholesalers, drugstore chains and pharmacy cooperatives. Although Germany's restrictive regulations concerning pharmacy ownership (the "Fremd- und Mehrbesitzverbot" which allows only qualified pharmacists to own a branch and only 4 pharmacies per owner) still has to be effectively overturned by the ECJ, the race for the establishment of larger pharmacy chains has already begun. In April, the German pharmaceuticals wholesaler, Celesio, bought the internet pharmacy DocMorris. In parallel, dm, one of Germany’s biggest drug store chains, started cooperating with the Dutch mail order pharmacy Europa Apotheek. dmclients can now order and pick up prescription and non-prescription drugs in selected branches – at often reduced prices (up to 40% for non-prescription, between €2,50 and €15 for prescription drugs). After a successful trial period, the service could soon be extended to all of dm's 900 outlets in the country. Similarly, the drugstore chain Schlecker announced plans to set up a mail order pharmacy. In addition, Schlecker has applied for a pharmaceutical wholesaler licence. Phoenix, another major pharmaceutical wholesaler, has taken a different approach, encouraging formally independent pharmacies to join marketing cooperatives, such as Linda or the marketing organisation of German pharmacies MVDA, which now have a joint membership of well over 3,400 pharmacies. Once the green light has been given from the ECJ, such cooperatives could easily be turned into branded pharmacy chains.
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