At 11 PM, when Anshula’s father developed a sudden fever, she was worried as the nearest pharmacy was closed, and the idea of waiting hours for an online order felt impossible. But within 30 minutes, a courier arrived at her doorstep with the prescribed medicine—no frantic midnight searches, no long waits.
Start-ups such as Farmako, Medstown, Plazza and others have started 30-minute services, raising funds to expand and take on the giants.
Huge demand
Gurugram-based quick medicine delivery start-up Farmako, which initially partnered with local pharmacy stores and Swiggy Genie for 30-minute medicine delivery observed huge demand and decided to pivot to quick medicine delivery.
“We live in a world where groceries are delivered in 10-15 minutes. We wanted to push the limits to test whether we can do a 15, 20-minute delivery,” said Aman Bhandula Founder and CEO of Farmako.
The company currently has operations in the Delhi- NCR region with three pharmacies (Delhi, Gurgaon, Moradabad) and is planning to expand its presence to 10 more cities, and 50 additional stores by 2025, he added.
Explaining the process, Bhandula said, “Users can order via our mobile app and WhatsApp. They get connected to our pharmacist on a real-time chat, who helps them place the order. Our riders pick up medicines from our store and deliver them in 30 minutes.”
Hyderabad-based Medstown founded by Syed Hussaini, has tied up with local pharmacies and uses its fleet to deliver medicines. The company currently has a partnership with 1,000 pharmacies in Hyderabad
“A physical pharmacy would store around 4,000 to 5,000 SKUs, at maximum. We have a database of 1.3 lakh to 1.4 lakh medicines,” he said.
Internal AI process
Explaining the process, he said that the company has developed an internal AI process—an embeds-on-prescription AI—which automates the process. It converts handwritten prescriptions into text within one and a half seconds and validates them. It goes to the pharmacy which checks it, and then the order is accepted.
“If a pharmacy does not have a medicine, the remaining order is mapped to the next pharmacy, ensuring fulfilment,” he added.
Competition from major players
The quick delivery of medicines is becoming a competitive battleground, with major companies like Swiggy, Zepto, Flipkart, Tata 1mg, and Apollo entering the space.
Unlike traditional e-pharmacies that rely on warehouses, start-ups are partnering with local pharmacies to fulfil orders in record time. Quick medicine delivery start-ups are leveraging technology to streamline prescription verification, automate fulfilment, and optimise logistics.
“Your product will be much different than the grocery one. And of course, you need a set of internal tools, a customer support team, and pharmacists who approve prescriptions in real-time,” said Bhandula.
Start-ups are also looking to raise funds as they expand. “We’ve raised $1.5 million from Y Combinator. We are in talks to raise Series A,” added Bhandula.
Hussaini of Medstown said, “We have already closed our pre-seed and will most probably close our seed round at a valuation of $5 million.”
The battle for dominance in quick medicine delivery is only just beginning. With consumer expectations shaped by instant grocery and food deliveries, start-ups and established players alike are racing to provide faster, more efficient, and tech-driven solutions for urgent medical needs.
