Samprada Singh, Chairman, Alkem Laboratories

HOW a young Patna University graduate with a simple family background became the head of a major pharmaceutical company in India is Samprada Singh’s unusual story. Mr Singh, founder and chairman of Alkem Laboratories, a Rs 750-crore pharma company, could probably say he owes his success to his initial misfortunes which he translated into success with entrepreneurial zeal and a positive mental attitude. Born and brought up in Bihar, he wanted to be a doctor. Since this dream could not be realised, he was compelled to explore other pastures. In 1946 he joined Gaya College, Patna University, to specialise in commerce. Once he obtained his graduate degree, Mr Singh thought he would, like his parents, become an agriculturist. However, successive droughts in Bihar constrained him to change his plans once again. In 1953, Mr Singh opened his first business, a small medical retail store in Patna. Seven years after opening the store Mr Singh felt it wasn’t enough. He started a business of pharmaceutical distribution in 1960 under the banner of Magadh Pharma. During these years he started establishing links with doctors and senior executives from major pharma companies. “My relationships with the medical profession as well as with pharma big bosses were excellent,” he explains. Once again, after a few years, Mr Singh started thinking about new ways to expand. Realising how limited were opportunities for the distribution business in Patna, he moved to Mumbai, where he decided to set up his own pharmaceutical company under the name Alkem Laboratories. The company’s beginning was not easy, admits Mr Singh. “There were many conflicts of power then in the industry and many did not wish to see me succeed,” he said. Besides, “The capital initially invested in the company was small, and the first years were financially quite difficult.” The company started its activities by focusing on anti-bacterials and NSAIDs, which at that time were prime therapeutic segments. Then came the turning point which catapulted Alkem into the big league. In 1989, Alkem successfully manufactured and marketed Taxim, a generic version of the antibiotic cefotaxime. Multinational Hoechst Marion Roussel (now Sanofi Aventis) was the innovators of the product and the company’s brand dominated the market at that time. “Aventis probably felt that a relatively small Indian company like ours may not pose them any threat but they were in for a big surprise. We surged way ahead of them,” said Mr Singh. The competitive prices offered by Alkem could not possibly be matched by the French company, which soon had to completely halt production. “Taxim really changed the whole profile of the company. It gave the company more visibility and a new credibility,” he told ET. Today, Alkem ranks No 7 in the domestic pharma industry and sells approximately 75m vials of Taxim per year, which probably represents more in terms of volume than any given molecule’s sales in the world. Taxim also accounts for around 15% of the company’s revenues. Taxim is, in fact, about to become the second Indian brand set to cross the Rs 100-crore sales mark. Over the years, marketing and finance became Alkem’s strengths. Alkem has a very strong track record of building brands. In fact, it is today a zero-debt company and 12 of the company’s brands feature among the top 300 pharma brands in India. Mr Singh mainly attributes the gro-wth of his company to his ability to create the best relations possible with his employees, associates and distributors. “Gaining people’s trust and commitment is one of the most important things to succeed. You have to make sure that all people you work with, whether they work within or with the company, are happy and you have to make them grow too as the company expands,” Mr Singh said. At 79 years, Mr Singh still has great plans for the company’s future. Not only is he about to open a division dedicated to nutraceuticals and food processing, but he also intends to make Alkem one of the top five Indian pharma companies within 2 years, primarily by increasing international presence, in addition to domestic consolidation. The target is set high at Rs 2,000-crore sales for ’10. But Mr Singh is confident. “That’s not a problem, it will be easy,” he concludes with a smile. Mr Singh’s life story epitomises the old English adage, “From tiny acorns grow mighty oaks.”