Nahdi continues to close small pharmacies, to open 10 clinics by 2026: CEO

Yasser Joharji, CEO of Nahdi Medical Co.

Yasser Joharji, CEO of Nahdi Medical Co., said the company’s plan to close small-sized pharmacies within residential districts to open larger ones that offer more services, solutions and products is still ongoing.

In an interview with Argaam, Joharji added that this year’s target number of pharmacies will be flexible, given the available opportunities for Nahdi in 2023.

About 105 small-sized pharmacies were closed and 43 new large pharmacies opened during 2022. The related financial impact was positive, as the new sites generated higher profit, while maintaining the number of customers and increasing the size of the shopping basket and purchasing value, the CEO underlined.

He pointed out that the company aims to open 10 Nahdi Care clinics by 2026, saying that the fourth clinic in Jeddah will open in the first quarter of 2023. "During the year, we will expand outside the city of Jeddah to cover other cities in the Kingdom,” Joharji continued.

The CEO also indicated that sales of Nahdi product brands and direct import brands exceeded SAR 1 billion, which contributed to more than 13% of the company’s total revenues in 2022.

He further stated, “Our brands represent 50% of the total products, and we also have brands that we import directly and market for. They are chosen based on market studies, which represent investment opportunities for us.”

"Our strategic decision is not to enter into manufacturing, but we contract with the best manufacturers around the world and import the best products from them according to the specific quality standards that we require. We have large quality control processes, from the pre-manufacturing stage to the post-consumer stage," he added.

As for the company's financial results for Q4 2022, the CEO said that Nahdi carried out huge investments in 2022, represented in opening new branches and clinics, as well as investment in technologies. He pointed out that the impact of these costs was reflected gradually over the year, particularly in the last quarter.

Moreover, Nahdi's online sales exceeded SAR 1 billion and contributed more than 13% of total revenues. Investing in advanced technologies increases customer experience and improves operations and efficiency, which will reflect positively on the company in the future, said the top executive.

Joharji also emphasized the key strength in Nahdi's business is the diversity of products as well as types and categories of pharmacies, which gives the company the ability to absorb inflation and any changes in its profit mix.

He added, "We are in balance, and we are fully hedged against any challenges, whether in supply chains or price inflation around the world. We have no bank loans, and this enhances our self-confidence and ability to overcome changes and finance expansions.”