- What makes a margin is popular: half of all pharmacists surveyed also see their favorite category, the common cold, as one of the biggest revenue generators. 

- No innovation: Four out of five pharmacists consider the OTC market to be moderately innovative. 

- Top relevance today and tomorrow: Sleep and stress medication is the clear number 1 from the pharmacists' point of view.

- Few clear favorites: Nicorette, Femibion and Voltaren are the clear hero products in their category. Other categories have no clear winner when it comes to willingness to recommend. 

Bielefeld/Bad Homburg, May 13, 2024 - Cold remedies are extremely popular with pharmacists. This is the result of the new Bonsai pharmacy study. "There is a clear correlation between the popularity of the OTC/over-the-counter categories and the margin that can be achieved with them," says Bettina Mertens-Danowski, Head of Bonsai Health. 

The pharmacists' favorite category is also the most lucrative

40 percent of pharmacists spontaneously name "colds & sniffles" as their favorite category. At the same time, out of 16 relevant categories, this is also the one that is of most financial interest to pharmacies (according to half of those surveyed). Only the related category of "cough/respiratory tract" was rated even higher in terms of positive margins (52%). In contrast, the categories "oral/dental" and "cardiovascular" are less commercially attractive (only eight and ten percent positive margin ratings respectively).

Voltaren, Nicorette and Femibion are the hero products in their category

There was unanimity among pharmacists when it came to choosing their "favorite recommendation" in the various categories: Voltaren received the largest share as the hero product of the "topical painkillers" with a whopping 81 percent. Nicorette is the clear favorite for "smoking cessation" with 73 percent and Femibion for "desire to have children / pregnancy" with 61 percent. In other categories, there are several products that pharmacists are happy to recommend.

The "sleep / stress" category is the most relevant for pharmacies

When it comes to current and future importance for pharmacies, the category "sleep, stress and anxiety" is the frontrunner: it is the absolute number one in terms of current relevance (70 percent) and is also the category that pharmacists believe will continue to dominate in the future (57 percent). Pharmacists also see this category as the innovation leader (48% innovation power). "The numerous new market entries and line extensions of established players in the recent past have not left pharmacists unimpressed," says Dirk Frank, Head of Bonsai Strategy. Pharmacists also look favorably on the innovative strength in the categories "anti-allergics" (34 percent), "eye preparations" (37 percent), "cosmetics" (31 percent) and "vitamins/nutritional supplements" (31 percent). "In times of mindfulness and self-optimization, vitamins and dietary supplements are 'on everyone's lips'," notes Bettina Mertens-Danowski. 

Pharmacists see little innovation in the market

In general, the innovative power across all categories is considered to be rather moderate: "Only a fifth of respondents perceive real innovations here and there," says Bettina Mertens-Danowski. The categories that are downright "waved off" by pharmacists are "smoking cessation" (only two percent innovation power), "cardiovascular preparations" (four percent) and "oral and dental preparations" (six percent).

Bonsai OTC Category Spotlight from now on annually

With its Category Spotlight, Bonsai shows for the first time how various OTC and over-the-counter categories are doing, how and why they are more or less popular and which products have hero status. In future, the Category Spotlight will be conducted once a year as a seismograph for the self-medication market. In the next survey (September 2024), the study will be expanded to include questions on brand presence in the over-the-counter and OTC segments. "So that OTC and over-the-counter manufacturers know how attractive and healthy the associated category is for their products - and how it performs in the perception of pharmacists from different perspectives," says Bettina Mertens-Danowski. Pharmacists' "recommendation favorites" are chosen for each category and the reasons for recommendation are shown in a competitive comparison. 

 Contact 

Bettina Mertens-Danowski, 

Head of Bonsai Health 

bettina.mertens-danowski@bonsai-health.com 

+49 40 6077681-26

Dirk Frank

Head of Bonsai Strategy 

dirk.frank@bonsai-research.com

+ 49 421-46022-99

About the new Bonsai pharmacy study

In the new pharmacy study, Bonsai asked 280 pharmacists in owner or management positions for their favorite category. In addition, 16 important OTC/free-choice categories were evaluated by subgroups, which also selected the respective hero product. The study shows how pharmacies perceive various aspects of the individual OTC categories - including margin, customer product loyalty, innovation power, consulting intensity, necessary pharmaceutical expertise, fun factor, current relevance and future importance. 

About Bonsai Health

Bonsai Health is the unit of Bonsai Research that bundles research, analysis and consulting for the pharmacy and healthcare industry. At Bonsai Health, sales data (directly from the pharmacies' merchandise management system) and survey data (from the Bonsai pharmacy panel) are combined with qualitative research on health brands and topics. www.bonsai-health.com

About Bonsai Strategy

At Bonsai Strategy, we support our clients' national and international innovation strategies and brand management with state-of-the-art research methods and many years of expertise. We show which factors are really relevant for your company, products or services. We don't explain the world, we find the path that moves companies and brands forward in current and new categories. www.bonsai-research.com/bonsai-strategy