Healthwarehouse's e-pharmacy grows 250 percent

In less than five years, Healthwarehouse.com has grown from a home-based idea to a publicly traded company with nearly 50 employees that ships more than 3,000 prescriptions across the U.S. each day.

"We are growing 250 percent a year, year over year," says co-founder Lalit Dhadphale. "In the first quarter, we filled about 33,000 prescriptions."

Dhadphale, a tech entrepreneur, started the business with chief pharmacist Ron Ferguson. Dhadphale moved to Cincinnati, where Ferguson lives, from Las Vegas to start the business.

The economic downturn, and the massive loss of individuals' jobs and health insurance, has a growing number of people turning to businesses like Healthwarehouse.com. The mail-order pharmacy offers about 300 generic prescription drugs for $3.50, and ships the medicines free to every U.S. state.

The company also sells pet medications, over-the counter medications and more than 1,200 brand name prescription drugs at reduced prices. It cuts cost by selling directly from the manufacturer to consumers from its "pharmacy/warehouse."

"The way consumers traditionally get drugs is to take a prescription to a retailer, and it's not the most efficient model," Dhadphale says. "We cut down on the cost associated with getting the medicine to the consumer. Whether we have 100 customers or 10,000, our fixed costs are the same. We pass the savings onto the consumer."

Healthwarehouse.com sells only FDA-approved and legal-for-sale drugs, and is licensed in all 50 states. It's one of only 24 Verified Internet Pharmacy Practice Sites (VIPPS) accredited pharmacies in the country.

The company recently relocated from Loveland to a 30,000 square foot space in Florence, Ky. About a third of that is office space, with the remainder warehousing medications. Healthwarehouse.com received incentives from the state as part of the move, and has a target to eventually create 220 jobs.

In addition, New Atlantic Ventures invested a total of $1.5 million in equity in the company by purchasing common stock. The investment will be used primarily for working capital and to expand the company's online presence and upgrade its technology infrastructure.

By Feoshia Henderson

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