Directo, an online B2B marketplace servicing the pharmacy sector, has launched a AUD $3 million capital raise to accelerate its growth, following the successful onboarding of approximately 54% of all Australian pharmacies and more than doubling its revenue over the past two years.
The capital injection will enable Directo to meet its short-term growth forecasts, building on its current AUD $40 million annualised revenue run rate. The company plans to enhance its platform, expand its supplier and pharmacy user base, broaden its services into allied health, and develop additional value-added services and revenue-generating activities.
Initially designed to cater to the fragmented Australian pharmacy industry, Directo's proprietary online marketplace aims to digitise the supply chain. It enhances processes by reducing costs, boosting efficiency, providing price transparency, and simplifying interactions. The platform integrates into pharmacy enterprise solutions and transforms supply chain management by allowing pharmacies to order directly from Directo's database of 180 suppliers and wholesalers through a single transaction.
Directo's platform is designed for seamless integration with existing pharmacy IT systems, operating, finance, and POS (point of sale) systems, ensuring a smooth and efficient ordering process. Its customer portal supports white-labelled solutions and specific shipment rules for sellers and buying groups. The company's custom-built internal admin system integrates bi-directionally with third-party software, including multiple ERPs, CRMs, and POS Gateways.
Pharmacy chains using the Directo platform include Terry White Chemmart, Direct Chemist Outlet, Chempro, and Good Price Pharmacy Group. Suppliers include McPhersons, Aero Healthcare, Nude by Nature, The Jojoba Company, Gibsons Eyewear, and Gibson Gifts.
Directo Founder and creator Gavin Upiter stated, "Directo is integrating the Australian pharmacy wholesale supply chain, a AUD $20 billion annual market, by seamlessly digitising the pharmacy-to-supplier journey. An average pharmacy can have 50 direct suppliers over and above their main pharmacy wholesaler, so we created Directo to simplify the process and ultimately, save time and money."
"Our platform is designed specifically for the pharmacy sector by industry experts. Directo addresses the needs of retail pharmacies and their suppliers by reducing administrative time through electronic invoicing, consolidating credits, payments, and queries. It helps pharmacies with greater cash flow management through extended payment terms for all suppliers while supporting multi-user accounts and head office functionality," Upiter added. "The platform's highly customisable interfaces and advanced reporting metrics enable all users to receive the tailored information they need to enhance their operations."
Upiter further commented on the company's growth, stating, "We've experienced robust growth over the past two years, doubling revenue each year to where we are now running at AUD $40 million annualised revenue and onboarding over half the nation's pharmacies. This AUD $3 million capital raise will enable us to manage this growth by increasing the use of AI in our peripheral task management, phone and analytics tools, and growing our workforce to onboard more pharmacies and suppliers and increase usage within the platform."
The company has decided to open the capital raise to new investors and, therefore, pushed back the deadline into July. People can register interest by filling out an enquiry form on their website.
