- Women have historically been essential to community health in India, handling medication, providing care, and making family health decisions
- Only 20% of Indian entrepreneurs are women, according to government data
From handling medications and providing care to making important health decisions, women have historically been integral to managing household health in India. They are still not very prevalent in formal healthcare entrepreneurship, though. Only 20 percent of Indian entrepreneurs are women, according to government statistics, and even fewer choose to work in the retail pharmacy industry, which discourages first-time business owners due to its high compliance, financial, and operational requirements.
Despite the fact that women make the majority of health decisions in households, this gender gap is particularly noticeable in the pharmacy sector. Even though India produces more than 150,000 pharmacy graduates annually, a lack of structured opportunities and support makes it difficult for many qualified women to become business owners.
One of the fastest-growing pharmacy chains in India, Medkart Pharmacy, has changed this by empowering aspiring female entrepreneurs through a women-first franchise campaign. The program provides a structured, low-risk route to pharmacy ownership and leadership in the community's healthcare system.
Since its founding in 2014, Medkart, which operates more than 100 stores in Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra, has assisted over 10 lakh families in saving ₹650 crore on necessary medications. Focusing on WHO-GMP-certified generic medications, the company's open, education-driven business model offers both affordability and credibility.
Getting their entire prescription filled is one of the most difficult things for patients, especially when they are looking for generic alternatives. This is addressed by Medkart, which saves consumers time, money, and repeated trips to the pharmacy by providing both branded and generic medications under one roof.
The entire cost of the franchise model, which includes staff hiring, training, licensing, store setup, inventory, branding, and access to Medkart's exclusive AI-powered inventory dashboard, is between ₹8 and ₹9 lakhs. Franchisees can run effective, tech-enabled operations thanks to the platform's support for real-time tracking, demand forecasting, billing, and expiry alerts.
"One of the main causes of small pharmacies closing is inventory loss," stated Ankur Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of Medkart. "We take back anything that doesn't move, and our system makes sure partners get the right stock at the right time."
Co-founder and COO Parasharan Chari added, "We want to simplify healthcare retail." With our model, even people without a background in pharmaceuticals can achieve success. We are pleased to give women a leadership role because they contribute empathy, trust, and discipline, all of which are critical qualities in healthcare entrepreneurship.
Franchisees will receive priority onboarding, mentorship, and access to Medkart's Franchisee Academy, a structured training program on pharmacy operations, customer service, compliance, and technology use, as part of the women-first initiative. According to reports, the majority of partners break even in three to six months, and the full ROI is attained in roughly eighteen months.
Through this program, Medkart hopes to help more women transition from unpaid caregiving positions to official leadership positions in the healthcare industry — not only as caregivers but also as prosperous business owners creating enterprises that benefit their communities.
