If you live in India, you have used the products from Mankind Pharma multiple times without even realising it. Think of Mankind and you will think of immensely popular consumer health brands like Gas-O-Fast, HealthOK, Manforce, Prega News and more. But do you know that Mankind Pharma is the brainchild of two brothers from Meerut?
Ramesh C Juneja and Rajiv Juneja started Mankind Pharma in 1995 with Rs. 50 lakhs. It was the younger brother, Rajiv who coined the company name as well as the names of all their brands.
Ramesh Juneja was a marketing representative for a pharma company and Rajiv Juneja worked at a chemist shop. Their on-field experience and background in pharma helped them pay attention to the unique needs and aspirations of consumers in rural and small town India.
In addition to the needs of the customers, there was sharp focus on people at the bottom of the pyramid, affordable prices and an aggressive marketing and sales pitch.
The Indian healthcare market was not very saturated at that time but still, it wasn’t easy for the Juneja brothers to crack it as new entrants. Neither did they have their own manufacturing facilities nor a database of permanent makers. They used to rely on contract makers. The medical reps by Mankind were initially met with disdain by its larger counterparts but the Junejas kept their heads down and continued to work on implementing the pricing and marketing strategy.
Mankind’s drugs were priced much less than the competition, the ad campaigns focused on consumer-led subjects and the company roped in Amitabh Bachchan as their brand ambassador as well as regional stars which made the company a household name.
Today, Mankind Pharma is ranked number one in the number of prescriptions and among the top-selling consumer health brands in India.
Ramesh and Rajiv Juneja’s journey is a testament to the fact that if you keep your head low, believe in your products and strive towards your goals, success is not far!