A notable trend across socio-economic groups is an increased concern to maintain good health…. a level of “health consciousness” much higher than before. The current ease of gaining knowledge to self-manage one’s healthcare needs, coupled with enhanced availability of affordable solutions, has led to focus of attention on a sub-segment of the Healthcare sector – aptly named Consumer Healthcare Goods.
Consumer healthcare goods broadly cover i) self-medication products not requiring doctor’s prescriptions (also termed OTC – Over the Counter medicines), ii) health supplements and iii) other products claiming some healthcare benefits for the user. Consumer Healthcare Goods, thus, span across a wide spectrum of what one may call the Illness to Wellness continuum.
Of the sub-segments mentioned above, there is a wide range of therapeutic medicines for minor episodic ailments, as well as prophylactic medicines focused on preventing minor ailments, or maintaining a healthy life. There are also some food & diet related products, fortified with special elements proven to enhance benefits for healthcare.
In contrast to prescription products, where a doctor prescribes a product to benefit their “patient”, in the case of Consumer Healthcare Goods, Products, the end-consumer can decide for oneself. There is a choice …. similar to the choice for consumer products – such as for personal care or household care. The external and internal forces that impact consumer buying behavior, play an important role in the decision process of consumer healthcare goods users too.
For a long time, such consumer healthcare products were largely pharmaceutical- industry-led. Today, consumer healthcare products are attracting increased attention among not only pharmaceutical companies but also among (FMCG) Fast moving consumer goods companies.
In the formulation-focused pharmaceutical industry, there are formal information sources related to the size of the overall market. However, for consumer healthcare products, the market size estimation has not been that easy, for a long time. Depending on which product-sub-segments are included, and which excluded, the overall market size estimates have varied. In fact, the reality of some prescription brands being sold to consumers “even without a prescription”, have prompted some sources to include those brands in the OTC segment of the consumer healthcare products, rightly or wrongly.
Well, just to get an idea of the market size……A recent estimate (at a conclave organized by Nielsen & IQVIA) of the consumer health goods market in India, places the figure in 2017 at INR 33,000 crores ( ~USD 4.6 bn), and is expected to grow to INR 50,000 crores ( ~ USD 7 bn) by 2020 an almost 14% CAGR during 2017-2020.