A Black-Owned Success Story: Rooted in Community, Now Growing Through Corporate Partnerships – Mogologolo Phasha, Chief Executive Officer, Kalapeng Pharmacies and President of SAPC

Meeting highlights:

• Mogologolo Phasha’s trajectory and foundation of the largest black-owned pharmacy group in South Africa, currently managing 2 main businesses: Kalapeng Pharmacies & PBM pharmaceutical wholesaler.

• Mogologolo Phasha's 6th year as president of SAPC: drawing and managing policy strategies, advising the ministry, and guaranteeing adherence to regulation to drive the pharmacy profession forward.

• Mogologolo Phasha as an advocate for independent pharmacies which differentiate themselves in the market through its focus on services and its human element.

• Kalapeng Pharmacies’ footprint in South Africa as a value-based health provider: focused on primary care services, chronic medication programs, telemedicine services to connect to medical professionals, and software for Drug utilisation review to improve the patient’s journey.

• Kalapeng Pharmacies’ priorities for 2024: expanding wholesaler business through strategic partnerships with corporate companies such as mining and private hospital groups.

• Kalapeng Pharmacies is a black-owned success story for South Africa, promoting local employment and increasing access to high-quality and complete health services.

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EF: Could you elaborate on the structure behind Kalapeng Pharmacies and your role in the market? 

MP: We have transitioned from being known as Black IQ because the company that owns the Kalapeng brand has evolved. Kalapeng Pharmacies is our consumer-facing brand, while Black IQ remains a shareholder and the original owner of the group, which includes both the pharmacies and PBM Pharmaceuticals. 

PBM Pharmaceuticals is our pharmaceutical wholesaler, where we purchase medicines from multinational pharma companies, store them, and then redistribute them to all our pharmacies and customers nationwide. The business operates through two main units: Kalapeng Pharmacies and PBM Pharmaceutical Wholesaler. 

EF: How does your role as the president of SAPC influence your business strategies at Kalapeng? 

MP: The two roles I hold are quite distinct and are not closely aligned, as some might assume. I have served as president of the South African Pharmacy Council and was recently re-elected for a second five-year term, marking my sixth year in this position. A significant part of this role involves regulating the profession and advising the Minister of Health on pharmacy-related matters. 

My first passion has always been community pharmacy. Coming from a family of retailers, I have been involved in retail since high school. After completing my master's degree, I considered pursuing a PhD but followed my retail instincts. This led to the founding of Kalapeng Pharmacies.  

My work at governmental community clinics during my master's degree studies further fueled my desire to combine my retail experience with a focus on community health, ultimately creating Kalapeng Pharmacies in 2001 with my partners, Andrew Bediako and later Emmanuel Manngo.  

EF: The retail industry has evolved significantly. How is this affecting or impacting the pharmacy business, and what are your priorities for the future? 

MP: The landscape has indeed evolved, particularly in South Africa. Legislative changes, like introducing the single exit price (SEP), have significantly impacted the industry. This legislation was designed to curb and eliminate perverse incentives in the market, which was a major concern for independent pharmacies. The SEP has levelled the playing field, allowing independent pharmacies to compete more effectively with larger corporate groups. 

At Kalapeng Pharmacies, we have prioritised service excellence, particularly by minimising customer waiting times. Our goal is to ensure customers can quickly receive their medications and counselling without long queues, which has become our key differentiator. This emphasis on service quality has been essential in adapting to the changes brought by the corporate pharmacy model over the years. 

In corporate pharmacies, you often see systems where customers take a ticket and wait for their number to be called. We moved away from that model as part of our differentiation strategy. We wanted to maintain the human element in our service, so we removed those automated systems. Instead, we focus on direct, personal interaction between our staff and customers, which has become a significant competitive edge for us. We do not equate customers to numbers; they need a personal touch from our staff members. 

We have attracted customers who value personal interaction over automated systems by emphasising the human touch. This approach is critical because we cannot always compete with the larger corporate pharmacies on price, as their scale gives them a pricing advantage. Therefore, we have concentrated on enhancing the customer experience through personalised service, a key part of our evolution and success in community pharmacy over the years. 

EF: Could you elaborate on Kalapeng's footprint in South Africa and how you are working to reshape our understanding of primary care with Kalapeng as a driving force? 

MP: In primary care, our main focus is actively shaping our presence with innovative programs. For example, we have introduced a program called "Repeat My Meds" in 2024, which caters to the changing needs of consumers who prefer a faster, more efficient pharmacy experience. This program allows customers to quickly pick up their repeat medications, like blood pressure meds, without waiting in a long queue. It's been well-received and has significantly improved turnaround times for those who prefer a quick in-and-out service. 

However, even with the convenience of "Repeat My Meds," we emphasise the importance of regular health checks. We encourage customers to schedule periodic clinic visits, ideally every three months, even if they have a six-month repeat prescription. This ensures that their medication works effectively and that their conditions, like blood pressure or sugar levels, are properly controlled. If we detect any issues during these checks, we can refer them to their doctor sooner than the usual six-monthly follow-up. 

Additionally, we integrate telemedicine through a service called "Hello Doctor" in our pharmacies. Our clinic nurses can connect patients to a medical doctor remotely if needed. Collaborating with the nurse, the doctor can review vitals, make a diagnosis, or adjust the medication if necessary, ensuring that our customers receive comprehensive care outside traditional doctor visits. 

This approach is part of our "light clinic" offering, beyond everyday minor ailments, immunisations and wound care. We’re looking to expand this service further because medication review is another critical service we offer at Kalapeng Pharmacies. This service is a significant differentiator for us. We have implemented specialised software in all our pharmacies that integrates with our dispensing system to conduct thorough drug utilisation reviews, particularly for patients with multiple prescriptions. 

As the pharmacist dispenses medication, the software runs a real-time review in the background, alerting the pharmacist of potential issues. 

The pharmacist can then print out or e-mail an assessment to the patient’s doctor, which helps reduce the pill burden by optimising treatment and eliminating unnecessary medications. Improved medication adherence and more effective treatment plans lead to better health outcomes. We can significantly improve adherence and health outcomes by rationalising patient's medications.  

There is now an incredible amount of data at our fingertips, allowing us to perform drug interactions and reviews in real time using today's technology—something that was not possible when I first started working as a pharmacist.  

EF: What is coming next for Kalapeng Pharmacies? 

MP: We focus on expanding our services, particularly with our PBM pharmaceutical Wholesaler division. One of our key objectives is to enhance our wholesaler services for corporate clients. We have already made significant progress and serviced two major mining clients. Our goal is to continue growing in this area. 

We are currently working on a proposal for another mining group, aiming to tailor a solution to their specific needs. Our approach involves customising services for each mining or corporate client, analysing their current costs, and offering more efficient alternatives. 

To support this division, we have established a courier pharmacy at one of our stores on Dely Road in Pretoria. This was part of a solution for a mining company that required an efficient and reliable courier pharmacy service. We designed a system that communicates directly with the mine’s system. This ensures we are notified if patients do not pick up their medication, preventing over-servicing and avoiding potential safety hazards from stockpiling. Moreover, this innovative system also monitors the health and safety of the mine's workers by identifying those patients who do not collect their medication thereby prompting intervention from the occupational health practitioners. This ensures that workers handling machinery are in optimal health, reducing the risk of injury. 

This solution was successfully tested for three years. Moving forward, we are committed to developing similar innovative solutions tailored to the needs of corporate clients. Our primary focus is on mining clients or similar ones that are labour-intensive. 

We have also compiled a proposal for large private hospital groups, showcasing how our PBM Pharmaceutical Wholesaler and service capabilities can benefit them. Expanding into this area would significantly increase the work we do as a group. We are hopeful about securing opportunities with private hospital groups, but at the same time, we are committed to growing our retail footprint to more communities. Community Pharmacy has always been our first love, a key area where we want to continue expanding. We like a saying: "In retail, you have to own the shelf, and every community deserves a Kalapeng Pharmacy."  

EF: Looking back, what are the things you are most proud of that you have accomplished with your team in building this black-owned enterprise? 

MP: I am most proud of our initial journey regarding Kalapeng Pharmacies. As a small, Black-owned group, we faced a lot of skepticism. When we expanded to new locations, professionals like pharmacists hesitated to join us in the early years. They wondered whether they could trust us as employers, whether we could pay their salaries on time, and whether we would succeed. 

Today, I am proud to say we have moved past those challenges. Now, we are in a position where professionals are reaching out to us, eager to be part of Kalapeng Pharmacies. We're seeing pharmacists fresh out of school and even those leaving big corporate groups wanting to join us, excited to be part of a growing Black-owned pharmacy chain in the country. This shift, where we have earned the trust and respect of the market and professionals alike, is something I am incredibly proud of. It is an honour to have people who have stayed with us for many years and new ones who want to be part of our story.