Can Medicines Reach You as Fast as Groceries? DocPharma Says It’s Possible

DocPharma, a quick-commerce healthcare infrastructure startup, is transforming prescription medicine delivery in India. Founded in early 2023 by Shashank Rai (CEO) and Saquib Ali (CBO), and later joined by Sagar Chauhan (CPTO) in 2025, the company enables delivery of essential prescription medicines in 30 to 60 minutes—a sharp contrast to the 2–3 day delays that traditionally plague the Indian pharmaceutical market.

DocPharma, a quick-commerce healthcare infrastructure startup, is revolutionizing medicine delivery across India by offering prescription medicines in as little as 30 minutes, directly addressing the significant delays in the healthcare system where essential medicines often take two to three days to reach patients.

DocPharma operates on a B2B2C model, partnering with e-pharmacies, hospitals, insurers, and health platforms to manage backend logistics and prescription fulfillment. By integrating with their platforms and handling last-mile delivery, DocPharma streamlines the medicine supply chain and boosts access for patients.

This innovative approach stands in stark contrast to the rapid delivery of groceries and meals, highlighting a critical infrastructure gap in medicine accessibility.

In FY25, the company reported a 462% increase in monthly Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) compared to FY24, and anticipates another 56% to 87% growth by the fiscal year’s end.

DocPharma has rolled out its 30-minute delivery services in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, and now has a presence in 12+ Indian cities including Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Pune, Gurugram, Noida, Patna, Faridabad, and Ghaziabad. The startup aims to reach over 43 cities, focusing on Tier 2 and Tier 3 locations, where 99% of pharmacy transactions still happen offline.

To fulfill rapid delivery, DocPharma leverages a hybrid model: it partners with local pharmacies and operates dark stores—small fulfillment hubs stocked with common medications. A proprietary rule engine identifies the best fulfillment point for each order and dispatches riders accordingly. Over 80% of orders are delivered within an hour, across 100,000+ SKUs, with a remarkably low bounce rate.

India’s pharmaceutical market is fragmented, with over 750,000 SKUs from 3,000+ manufacturers. Traditional online pharmacies often fail to fulfill complete orders quickly. DocPharma’s B2B2C model aggregates demand and solves for this fragmentation.

Protracted Delivery Times: Traditional online pharmacies often require 2-3 days for complete prescription orders, posing a significant challenge for urgent medical needs. DocPharma directly addresses this by providing 30-60 minute delivery, minimizing the need for patients to visit multiple pharmacies.

The company also addresses a longstanding issue in health insurance: underutilization of OPD benefits for medicines. While only 4% of insured patients used their benefits earlier, DocPharma’s system improved cashless conversions to 8.9%, reducing claim processing costs by an estimated 8%.

Underutilized Insurance Benefits: The low utilization rate of insurance OPD services for medicines, at only 4%, is due to cumbersome reimbursement processes. DocPharma's streamlined fulfillment has significantly increased cashless conversions from 3.8% to over 8.9%, leading to an estimated 8% reduction in claim processing costs for medicine reimbursements.

The idea for DocPharma emerged during the COVID-19 lockdown, when Rai and Ali observed how difficult it was for residents to access medicines. They initially tested a hyperlocal model by delivering medicines to a housing society of 1,500 flats, generating ₹5 lakh/month in business—completely bootstrapped.

Orders came through WhatsApp, and the duo personally handled logistics, turning an act of necessity into a live test of demand.

In 2025, Sagar Chauhan joined as CPTO to help scale the platform’s technology after earlier outsourcing setbacks. Under his leadership, DocPharma built a secure and privacy-focused system where customer data is never shared with pharmacies. Instead, their backend quietly handles notifications and inventory logistics, allowing partner platforms full customer ownership and control.

With India’s domestic pharma market projected to reach USD 130 billion by 2030, and increased OPD insurance penetration expected (1 in 5 Indians by 2030), DocPharma aims to become a key enabler of reliable infrastructure in a low-margin, high-volume industry.

The company is currently raising a Pre-Series A round to expand into more cities and deepen its B2B partnerships.

(Rh/Eth/DJR/MSM/SE)