Saveo’s revenue nears Rs 200 Cr in FY24 with improved economics

Pharmacy-focused supply chain and marketplace platform Saveo has achieved remarkable growth, scaling 103X since its inception. Its revenue soared to Rs 196 crore in FY24 from Rs 1.9 crore in FY20. During the same period, the company also managed to reduce its losses.

Saveo’s revenue from operations increased by 16.7% to Rs 196 crore in FY24 from Rs 168 crore in FY23, according to its financial statement sourced from the Registrar of Companies (RoC).

Saveo is a B2B pharmaceutical marketplace that connects pharmaceutical companies with retailers, serving as a procurement hub for generics, surgical supplies, OTC products, specialty medicines, allopathy, and ayurvedic medicines. The sale of these medicines was its sole source of revenue in FY24..

On the expense side, the cost of procurement of medicines accounted for 78% of the total expenses. This cost surged by 19.5% to Rs 184 crore in FY24 from Rs 154 crore in FY23. However, Saveo optimized its workforce costs, resulting in a 24.32% reduction in employee benefit expenses, which amounted to Rs 28 crore in the last fiscal year.

Finance costs increased by 40% to Rs 7 crore, while other overheads, including operational expenses, amounted to Rs 16.23 crore in the last fiscal year. Overall, Saveo’s total expenditure rose by 10% to Rs 235 crore in FY24.

The Bengaluru-based firm managed to control its losses by 16% to Rs 38.5 crore in FY24 from Rs 46 crore in FY23. Its ROCE and EBITDA margin improved to -225% and -15.69%, respectively.

On a unit level, Saveo spent Rs 1.20 to earn a single rupee of revenue in FY24, an improvement from Rs 1.27 in FY23. The company reported Rs 57 crore in current assets, including Rs 10 crore in cash and bank balance, for FY24.

According to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, Saveo has raised a total of $20 million in funding to date. Its leading investors include Matrix Partners (11.81%), RTP Global Partners (10.42%), and Indian Quotient (9.06%).

The pharmacy business which Saveo serves is in the middle of what would be considered at least a once in three decade wave of changes. From a move away from the medical reps model to the advent of online pharmacies to the increasing reach and distribution of government backed generics dispensers. For Saveo, seeing as it does to make life simpler for the smaller pharma manufacturer to the pharmacist, it is a period to keep a tight lid on costs while expanding carefully. It has used the IT chops of its founders to make the process as simple as possible and seems close to success in terms of break even. Like any business, a little luck in terms of a general expansion of the pharma manufacturing market, besides tighter regulation of the pharmacy distribution might help, but the trajectory is certainly promising either way.