Dona pharma chain exceeded 100 units

“Expansion will continue on the same line in 2008 as that in 2007,” said Ovidiu Constantin, the CEO of Siepcofar, owner of the Dona chain. He told Business Standard that the company plans to invest €7 million in the pharmaceutical network, this year, slightly lower than last year’s investments of €8 mln.
By the end of the year, the chain is expected to have 125 units. It will reach maturity at 150-200 units in the coming years, Constantin said.

Last year, the company expanded countrywide and opened pharmacies in areas not previously covered, such as Iasi, Cluj-Napoca and Targu Mures.

The company posted €40 million worth of business in 2007 and plans to increase turnover up to €65 mln in 2008.

The chain’s main shareholder, Siepcofar, is owned by two local businessmen, Nicu Nistor and Eugen Baciu. The latter also owns 40 percent of pharmaceutical distributor Farmexpert, of which German Anzag group has a 60 percent share package.

Some 5,000 pharmacies are operating in Romania, of which 1,300 are owned by pharmaceutical chains. Main players on the market are Sensiblu and Catena, with more than 200 units, Farmacia Richter, with 130 units, and Dona, HelpNet and City Pharma, with some 100 units.