I was reading through comments on a forum for pharmacists and I was quite surprised to see that 99% of pharmacists
on that forum were bored with their jobs. They referred to their jobs as robotic and highly monotonous and most of them were searching for alternative careers or business ideas for pharmacists. There were also some retired pharmacists seeking for interesting business opportunities that they could invest in.
I am a little surprised that most people (including some pharmacists) think that being a pharmacist starts and ends at being a drug dispenser at a pharmacy, hospital or owning a drug store. But I like to think that those are just some of the things pharmacists do.
Pharmacists not only dispense drugs, they are involved in researching and developing new drugs to control and eliminate new and existing diseases, advising doctors on drug recommendations and dosages, they counsel patients and do a whole lot of other things.
The truth is that without a pharmacist, the job of a doctor, dentist, ophthalmologist or even a surgeon is incomplete. All medical professionals, regardless of their field need pharmacists for support and advice when it comes to drug related issues.
The job of a pharmacist doesn’t have to be monotonous and boring and as a pharmacist, you really do not have to be confined to dispensing drugs to patients. There are several other business opportunities you could explore which would not only make your career more interesting, but also earn you more money.
Top 20 Small Business Ideas for Pharmacists
1. Drug Research and Development-: Like I said earlier, pharmacists are responsible for researching and developing drugs. This means that as a pharmacist, you could start your own drug manufacturing business.
If you cannot afford the facilities and equipment required to produce your own drugs, you could do all the research and development and then outsource the actual manufacturing of the drugs to drug manufacturing companies. You would find a lot of such companies in the USA, China and some other countries too.
2. Consultancy Services-: I also mentioned that other medical experts need the support of pharmacists to perform their jobs. This is because pharmacists understand drugs better because it is their field of specialty, so they are in the best position to advice other medical experts on the kinds of drugs to recommend for specific cases and also make them understand the side effects of those drugs and how they could affect patients with specific cases. As a pharmacist, you could become an independent consultant, offering your services to other medical professionals for a fee.
3. Drug Marketing-: You could also think about becoming a drug marketer, especially if you are someone who enjoys commerce. As a drug marketer, you could make money from selling and distributing drugs made by different pharmaceutical companies to hospitals and pharmacies in your area. You could choose to do this as an employee of a single drug company or as an independent marketer selling to different companies.
4. 24-hour Pharmacy-: People can get sick at any time and having access to drugs at every hour of the day could be a life saver for many people with medical emergencies. However, to start this kind of business, you would need tight security and staffs that can run shifts to keep the pharmacy running hitch-free 24/7.
5. Mobile Pharmacy-: You could also think of starting a mobile pharmacy. A lot of sick people can barely make it down to the drug store to get their prescriptions and would be glad to have someone deliver them at their door-steps instead.
6. Vitamin shop-: Another business idea is to start a vitamins sales business which would involve selling food supplements, weight-loss drugs and anti-aging products.
7. Medical writer: If you love writing, you could pursue a career as a medical writer, helping informational websites to write contents about drugs, uses and side effects. A popular website in that niche is webmd.com.
8. Apps Developer-: Another option to consider is designing and selling mobile applications to teach people about drugs and their side effects. You could also design an application to remind people to take their prescriptions.
9. Aerobics Center-: Pharmacists can also venture into the physical fitness and sports industry by setting up aerobics centers and gymnasiums.
10. Alternative medicine-: More people are embracing herbal medicine these days. You could start a pharmacy that sells only herbal drugs or even develop your own herbal drugs.
11. First Aid kits-: You could also put together first aid kits in fancy boxes and supply them to pharmacies or sell them at mall kiosks or online stores.
12. Health Seminars-: You could help people learn more about their health by organizing health seminars and health-related events.
13. Senior Care Service: Another option to consider is a kind of pharmacy business that caters to senior citizens. Many elderly people are not strong enough to walk or drive to the drug store, so you can go around your area and get a database of elderly people as well as their prescriptions; so that you can supply them their drugs without having them leave the comfort of their homes.
14. Natural Home remedy-: There are home remedies for a lot of minor sicknesses and infections but a lot of people do not know about them. You could start a business that helps to increase awareness of natural home remedies by selling such remedies or even writing a book about the subject. A very good example of a popular book in that niche is the all-time best seller ‘Where there is no doctor’.
15. Online Pharmacy-: If cost of rent is the only thing stopping you from setting up your own pharmacy, then there’s hope because you don’t necessarily need a physical store to sell your drugs. You could consider starting an online pharmacy but that is after you must have checked with the regulatory authorities in your country to be sure it is not illegal in your country to sell prescription drugs online.
16. Cosmetics line-: The cosmetics industry is also growing and you can invest in it too by starting your own cosmetics line, producing and selling products like body creams, hair creams, perfumes, body soaps and anti-aging products.
17. Pharmaceutical Benefit Management-: Pharmaceutical benefit management companies help to mediate between patients and health insurance management companies on drug benefits and values.
18. Device Marketing-: Pharmacists can also branch out from selling drugs and venture into sales and distribution of medical devices instead.
19. Medical Counseling-: Patients suffering from terminal and life threatening health issues are usually referred to medical counselors to help them and their families understand the situation and help them to understand what they should be doing to make the situation a lot better.
20. Rehabilitation Center-: Another idea you could also consider is to set up a rehabilitation center to help drug addicts get a lot better.