Walmart may be planning to acquire pharmacy startup PillPack

Walmart Inc., the globally reputed brand across the supply chain market, is discussing a purchase deal with PillPack, a pharmacy startup firm sorting medicine by dosage & delivering it to the consumer’s doorstep. Plausibly, this strategic move may be aimed at helping the retail firm expand its pharmacy product portfolio. Apparently, Walmart may be planning to offer a valuation lesser that USD 1 billion for acquiring PillPack.

Reliable reports suggest that PillPack raised nearly USD 118 million in venture funding. The firm basically categorizes pills into date & time stamped packets for the patients, particularly older ones, who receive multi-drug treatment for chronic illness. It has also been reported that the firm has generated a pharma software tool, which supports the refills and offers online dashboard while guaranteeing timely medicine delivery to the patients.

Experts are of the opinion that the geriatric population is a key demographic for Walmart, which operates nearly 4,700 pharmacies across the U.S. and wants to further grow its healthcare activities. As per a recent news snippet, Walmart entered into an agreement with Humana Inc. offering co-branded Medicare drug to consumers, perhaps to expand its reach across the pharma sector.

Incidentally, the retail giant has also undertaken a plethora of initiatives ranging from obtaining the drone technology for effectively handling the food supply and seeking an online fashion presence through myriad acquisitions. The retail behemoth, seemingly, has also made considerable attempts to acquire smaller firms for competing against its arch business rivals such as Amazon.

Last month, Marc Lore, the President & CEO of Walmart ecommerce business in the U.S., had stated that the firm is likely to go the whole hog while acquiring startup firms. He has further declared that the purchases may fall in the range of USD 50 million to USD 300 million.

Walmart and PillPack have both not commented on their ongoing talks regarding a mutual agreement.