The Future of Pharmacy is Here! Here are the Top 3 Online Pharmacies in Indonesia.

Since COVID-19 was classified as a pandemic during the early months of 2020, the world was in a state of disarray, as the situation escalated quickly in the following months. Panic buying followed by fear and desperation as a result of the deadly virus (amplified by hoaxes and false information about the virus itself) certainly did not make things any better. Governments around the world then had to take drastic measures, which include quarantines and lockdowns all over the provinces in their countries. Much like the rest of the world, Indonesia was also impacted by the pandemic situation. In February 2022, Indonesia beat its own record in terms of COVID daily cases, in which more than 57.000 people were infected in a single day, as opposed to the 56.000 daily cases in July of the previous year. As a result, most Indonesians were told to do their daily activities from home. In order to stay healthy, people started to look for vitamins and other supplements, yet some are afraid to buy them offline, as they might contract the virus themselves, thus people turn their attention to online pharmacies. Before the pandemic, there were quite a lot of pharmacies trusted by the people to buy medicines, and once the pandemic started, these pharmacies digitised their services, as is the case with these 3 online pharmacies in Indonesia.

KIMIA FARMA MOBILE

PT. Kimia Farma Tbk is the oldest and the first pharmaceutical producer and distributor in Indonesia. Under the name of NV Chemicalien Handle Rathkamp & Co., it was established in 1817, and in 1958, as the Indonesian government imposed an act and rules regarding companies with Dutch roots to be mixed into one, NV Chemicalien Handle Rathkamp & Co. was not an exception. The acts and rules were imposed in an effort to embed nationalism in the hearts of the Indonesian people. As the first and the oldest pharmaceutical producer and distributor, Kimia Farma has a special place in the hearts of the Indonesian people. Not only that, but Kimia Farma also exports medicines and ingredients required by other countries to make their own medicines such as iodine and quinine to India, Japan, Taiwan, and many others. Starting in 2022, Kimia Farma announced its new feature called Kimia Farma Mobile, in which people can buy various health products, including cosmetics. The reason behind this is to offer services to those who wanted to prepare for the religious practice called “fasting” with vitamins and other supplements, and as a result stays healthy during the practice, which lasts for one month. As Kimia Farma has outlets all over Indonesia, it is hoped that those who live in remote locations can have access to buy medicines that are not readily available in the nearby clinics or the local public health centres (Puskesmas). The Kimia Farma Mobile application offers a wide variety of features such as buying medicines and other health supplements in one click, reservation of health checkups, including COVID tests and doctor consultations, and laboratory services. 

K24KLIK

Established in 2002, K24 has made a relatively positive impression in the minds of the people. With its first store opened in Magelang, Yogyakarta, it has then opened up more stores and franchises in almost all provinces in Indonesia. More than 600 stores and franchises operated by K24 are spread across 26 out of 37 provinces in Indonesia. As the name suggests, K24 operates 24 hours a day. It never closes during weekends, even on national holidays, when other pharmacies normally close. This, along with overall cheaper and trusted products offered at the stalls, has made many Indonesian trusts the company even further. The company’s digitalization actually started way before COVID was even recognized. In 2016, the company introduced K24Klik as the company’s effort to jump into the world of digitalization. Features offered by the application include a simplified UI (User Interface) for those who only understand the usage of applications at a bare minimum, easy searching through categorized products such as fever medicines, cough medicines, and so on, all the way through medical devices such as COVID test kit, sphygmomanometer (Blood-pressure Monitor), and many other selections. Aside from UI and a wide variety of products, the application also provides users with live chat and when the need arises, users can upload a doctor’s prescriptions to acquire particular medicines that are usually not available without a doctor’s approval. Other than that, a feature that makes this application stands out from the others is the fact that users can leave a review about the medicines that they have previously bought, thus other users are able to read and assess the effectiveness of the medicines in question.

KALCare

Previously known as Kalbe Store, KALCare is another online pharmacy in Indonesia that is worth mentioning. Even though not as well-known as its contenders, namely K24Klik or Kimia Farma Mobile, KALCare still holds a place in the hearts of many Indonesians. The application itself is not as user-friendly as K24Klik, yet the products offered in KALCare vary more than the products offered in K24Klik. Through KALCare, users are able to buy not only medicines and vitamin supplements but also food and drinks, such as milk, coconut water, and so on. Yet KALCare offers innumerable coupons and discounts on an almost daily basis. Through the promo section of the application, users are able to see coupons and discounts of the day. KALCare also offers users to upload their own doctor’s prescriptions to obtain medicines that are deemed as “potent drugs”.