The Georgian medical company PSP Group is proud to be celebrating 25 years as Georgia’s leading company in the pharmaceutical market.
“For 25 years PSP has been offering only guaranteed quality products and services to Georgian customers. From the very beginning PSP has been offering customer-oriented solutions and bringing world trends to the country. It is that which has made PSP so popular,” said the Director of the Pharmaceutical Company PSP Group, Gocha Gogilashvili.
PSP started its activities in 1994 and its first appearance on the Georgian pharmaceutical market was related to distribution. Initially, the distribution company PSP Implementation Centre was created, which became the first official distributor of European medicines in Georgia.
Step by step the company expanded its assortment with medical cosmetics, hygiene care, children’s nutrition and skin care products.
“Medical cosmetics from France, Germany and other European countries have become most popular in Georgia. Expansion of its assortment; completion of the network’s rebranding; and offering innovative products and services – are still the main priorities for PSP after 25 years,” Gogilashvili said.
To note, the name of the company – PSP – is an abbreviation of the Latin expression ‘Paulatim Summa Petuntur’, which in English means ‘step-by-step to the peak’. And the company constantly strives to justify the main idea behind its name.
“It was one of the first companies in Georgia to appear on the market with its own logo, and today PSP’s logo is synonymous with high-quality products and service,” said Gogilashvili.
Today, 224 PSP stores serve over 2.2 million customers monthly, offering about 30,000 medical, parapharmic, hygiene and cosmetic products at the lowest prices for customers, including some European brands that are exclusively sold at PSP.
PSP rebranded its network throughout Georgia following a new concept designed by British experts, that has no analogue, neither on the Georgian market nor in any post-Soviet Union country.
The first new concept store of PSP’s was opened in May 2016. The renewed PSP has three zones: beauty, health, and family care zones.
The beauty zone is pink-coloured and offers the highest quality beauty products from French and other European producer companies. The family care zone is painted yellow and is attractive for those with children, while the health zone is full of pharmaceutical products and is painted green.
With this rebranding PSP introduced a new concept – ‘more than a pharmacy’.
“As of today, the majority of PSP stores are already rebranded and I think we will complete this process by the end of this year. This year alone we have already opened 16 new pharmacy branches and plan to open six more in the nearest future,” said Gogilashvili.
For the PSP pharmacy chain’s 2016 rebranding campaign PSP Group received an award from the Stevie Awards, the world’s premier business awards.
In 2000 the company started drug production within its daughter company GMP, which produces over 150 sorts of medicaments. Medicines produced in Georgia are already exported to 11 countries.
PSP currently holds a 30 percent share of the Georgian market. Sales of PSP products increased by 9% in 2018 compared to 2017.
In recognition of its successful and innovative activities PSP won its 14th Golden Brand at the 14th awards ceremony, meaning that PSP has never let the award go to any other company operating in the same field.
Q. PSP customers can use its ‘My Family Card’, which is an accumulative points card. How is the number of card holders increasing every year?
A. This is one of the most popular cards. Like all other projects of PSP’s, My Family Card is also in the process of constant development. At first, 12 years ago when the card was originally introduced, customers were accumulating ‘smiles’ per every item purchased at any pharmacy of PSP, and with these ‘smiles’ they could choose any gift from the catalogue. One year later cardholders were able to participate in a lottery. During these past 11 years 23 lotteries have revealed 150 lucky winners. 48 of them have received a brand new car; four of them – GEL 25,000; 10 of them – a GEL 2,000 salary for one year; and 11 – received flats. Also, 153 families received gifts from PSP and 2 winners of GEL1,000 per month during next 10 years.
My Family Card has acquired a new function and become a discount card too. Besides the accumulation of smiles, owners can get a six percent discount on any product at any store of PSP. With all these opportunities it has become a card of unprecedented popularity on the Georgian market.
Here I will add that one of the most innovative products of PSP is also its online pharmacy, which enables customers to buy online all the products that are available at PSP stores.
Q. What makes PSP a distinguished pharmacy network and what is its competitive advantage?
A. During these 25 years PSP has been established as a company that offers quality products and services.
The pharmaceutical market has always been very competitive. Health and beauty care is important for everyone. People choose to go for not only products and services, but also for innovations and offers. PSP offers discount days on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Fridays; during the first week of every month there are special discounts and gifts for French cosmetics; and during the ‘Month of Children’, we hold special offers periodically for children’s products, seasonal medicines and those that are in high demand, etc. All of this has resulted in increased customer interest.
Q. What are the challenges that your business is facing currently?
A. The PSP pharmacy network literally covers the whole territory of Georgia, which is an important factor in terms of growth of geographical access for the population, but it is not enough. As pricing policy is always of the highest important to people, we work on a daily basis with suppliers to reduce prices.
In addition, we to make special and practical offers for seasonal medicines.
Our strategy is the stable development of the company and the field, customer-oriented offers, prices, campaigns, products and activities.
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