Gulf Pharmaceutical Industries (Julphar), a pioneer in pharmaceutical manufacturing in the Arab world, and Global Investment House, a leading manager of private equity investments in the region, have set up a pharmacy stores venture.

Planet Pharmacies, a holding company being established in Dubai, aims to become the largest healthcare products retailer in the Mena region through organic and inorganic growth strategies.
Abdul Razzaq Yousef, chairman of Planet Pharmacies and Omar El-Quqa, executive vice president at Global and vice chairman of Planet Pharmacies announced the venture.
Yousef said the chemistry between Julphar and Global would bring in synergies of immense proportion and revitalise the entire healthcare industry in the Mena region.
He added that the formation of the company would bring order to the fragmented and unorganised retail pharmaceutical industry as well as improve the standards of services to public and generate employment to Arab professionals.
The company plans to bring in industry experts from all across the globe who will in-turn assist Planet in its ambition and vision of improving the standards of the pharmaceutical stores sector to those seen in  the advanced countries of Europe and America.
Operations will begin with 65 pharmacies and clinics with the aim of spreading the network to the entire Mena region by 2010 with more than 2,000 pharmacies.
Yousef said the company could be a reliable partner to insurance service providers and provide a very large network of pharmacies, identical in service and standards, throughout the region.
The chairman of the new company explained that Planet’s retail basket would include a mix of prescription and over-the-counter drugs, cosmetics and other health and hygiene products. There also would be an opportunity to develop in-house brands across select product lines.
In addition, stores would provide value-added services such as skin care advice, prescription filling services, tie-ups with insurance providers, drive-through facilities and 24-hour pharmacies. The network would also provide customer loyalty programmes, benefiting the end users/customers. Planets business model would also include having clinics attached to its pharmacies.
El-Quqa expressed his pleasure and shared his vision of making Planet a leading force and provider of quality medicine across the Middle East and North Africa.
The company will initially have a capital of Dh900 million ($245.03 million). It will be eventually increased to Dh3 billion. Julphar and private equity funds managed by Global will be the founders having 40 per cent and 60 per cent shareholding respectively.