KENYA— The Pharmaceutical Imports & Export (PIEX) Group, a leading distributor of health and well-being products in West Africa, has signed a strategic distribution pact with Phillips Pharma Group, a Kenyan-based pharma distributor.
The PIEX Group seeks to strengthen its presence in the Anglophone markets of Sub-Saharan African & through the strategic distribution alliance with Phillips Pharma Group.
Through this partnership, PIEX will benefit from Phillips Pharma Group’s distribution network of over 20,000 pharmacies as well as medical marketing capabilities across a vast Geography covering a population of over 450 million in Anglophone markets in Sub-Saharan Africa, including key ones such as Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria.
Established in 1991 in Kenya, Phillips Pharma Group has offices and warehouses in Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana, Mauritius, and Namibia.
Phillips Pharma Group markets and distributes a wide range of pharmaceuticals, diagnostic equipment, and medical devices from over 100 of the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies.
The PIEX Group and Phillips Pharma Group will collaborate with a common objective to improve access and availability of quality healthcare products and solutions in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Historically, present in Francophone West Africa (whose main markets are the Ivory Coast, Senegal, Cameroon, and Mali).
PIEX can now offer access to the English-speaking East and Central African markets, with developments underway in Southern Africa (South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, etc).
Recently, the Paris-based PIEX Group, announced that it has achieved a turnover of US$152 million in 2021.
Moreover, this shows organic growth of 7 percent compared to 2020, a year with a record demand due to COVID-19 and the risks of supply chain disruptions.
Piex generated US$159.8 million in revenues in 2022, a 6% increase on the previous year.
This performance was achieved despite a difficult environment marked by very high inflation, numerous supply disruptions due to the conflict in Ukraine, particularly with its European manufacturers who are heavily dependent on countries producing active ingredients – and political instability in the Sahel countries.
Essentially, growth in certain ranges, such as infant formula (+40%), specialty ranges manufactured in Asia (+21.6%) and North Africa (+16.3%), cardiology specialty ranges (+12%), new ranges launched since 2018 (+58.6%) and injectable paracetamol (+80%).
The good performance of Central Africa and Indian Ocean’s French-speaking countries such as Burundi (+68%), Djibouti (+30%), Mauritius (+70%), the DRC (+42%), Rwanda (+73%), and Chad (+32%), which should become growth drivers when the dynamism of the largest west African markets slackens.
In the major countries of the French-speaking zone, PIEX Group is outperforming the market, particularly in Senegal (+7% in a market which has not changed), and Côte d’Ivoire (+8% compared with +4%).
Although, in the case of Cameroon (-1.9% for PIEX compared with -8%, a decline which can be explained by the increasing complexity of import)
The quality of the product ranges, the dynamism of the local promotion teams, and the total commitment of PIEX’s partners to Africa, as well as the flexibility offered by PIEX Group to its partners, explain this good performance.
Economic outlook 2023
With further growth in the first half, PIEX aims to reach US$172 million in revenues by 2023.
Growth will be fuelled by the expansion of its upstream and downstream activities, with external growth projects covering the exploitation of drugs and the development of service activities in drug promotion.
As well as several acquisitions that are underway or under consideration that will enable the PIEX Group to strengthen its sales and profitability, with new companies whose margins on sales are higher than in distribution.
Bertrand Talbotier, Chairman of PIEX Group, said: “PIEX Group’s excellent financial health in a turbulent international environment underlines the quality of our company’s fundamentals. We want to build on these fundamentals to conduct further our mission of guaranteeing equitable access to healthcare in Africa.”
Piex’s ambition is to build an integrated distribution network in the growing yet complex African continent market.
Through partnerships and acquisitions, Piex can now offer a “one-stop-shop” solution to manufacturers seeking to establish or reinforce their presence in Africa.
For all the latest healthcare industry news from Africa and the World, subscribe to our NEWSLETTER, and YouTube Channel, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn, and like us on Facebook.
