NimbleRx touts itself as first delivery service designed for independent and local pharmacies

A new company, NimbleRx, has announced itself as the first service focused on empowering independent pharmacies to offer on-demand delivery

Nimble's online and in-app platform provides pharmacy customers with a simplified fulfillment and delivery solution from these local businesses. The company is already working with 600 pharmacies around the country, including chain, independent and specialty pharmacies, and has quickly reached $150 million in annual run-rate revenue.

Until late 2018, Nimble operated a direct-to-consumer pharmacy model through its own distribution centers, but changed course upon identifying the massive market opportunity in helping bring independent pharmacies into the digital and mobile economy.

Nimble partners with the independent, local and regional pharmacies that make up half of more than 60,000 pharmacies nationwide. These businesses are striving to keep up with consumer expectations and match the speed and convenience offered by the on-demand economy.

WHAT'S THE IMPACT

To address this gap in the market, Nimble launched its on-demand, same-day prescription delivery service early this year. The company enables local and independent pharmacies to quickly enter the mobile economy and offer their services without having to build their own technology.

To date, the businesses that have worked with Nimble have improved their patient satisfaction to an average Net Promoter Score of 75, as well as growing their margins through increased purchase frequency, the company said.

For consumers, Nimble strives to simplify the pharmacy experience and create easy delivery options through a mobile app or text experience. The service provides a web-based platform for scheduling on-demand prescription delivery.

In a little less than a year, Nimble has built a network of pharmacies that reaches an approximated 100 million consumers across the U.S. Sample partners include Bartell Drugs in Seattle, Washington and Parkside Compounding Pharmacy in Sacramento, California.

THE LARGER TREND

Independent pharmacists say they've been squeezed by the bigger player companies and pharmacy benefit managers.

Consumers can also get prescription medications delivered to them through an Amazon Prime membership. In 2018, the tech giant acquired PillPack, an online pharmacy that competes with major pharmacies including CVS Health. The Amazon service differs from NimbleRx in that it doesn't partner with local pharmacies.

ON THE RECORD

"The rise of the on-demand economy has placed a large burden on local and regional pharmacies," said Nimble CEO Talha Sattar. "They lack the infrastructure needed to offer the same integrated delivery service available from larger retailers. In less than a year, Nimble has begun to transform the pharmaceutical industry by bringing this capability to pharmacies across the country and giving millions of customers who shop at these locations access to prescription delivery."

"We realized our long term sustainability was tied to being able to meet the evolving needs of customers who demand convenience," said Raj Jhala, pharmacist in charge at Saint Peters Community Pharmacy in Saint Peters, Missouri. "Since partnering with Nimble, nearly 50 percent of our customers have converted to using it for their prescriptions. Having a delivery platform has drastically improved not only the quality of our customer service but our business overall. We believe this puts us ahead of our larger national chain competitors and they will have to play catchup to meet our capabilities and customer focus."

Twitter: @JELagasse

Email the writer: jeff.lagasse@himssmedia.com