According to statistics analysed by ET Online, the pharmaceutical retail business in India is exhibiting early indications of a behavioural change toward convenience-led repeat consumption as quick-commerce platforms delve further into medicine delivery, while overall sales growth remaining moderate.
The introduction of rapid delivery platforms has not yet resulted in widespread changes, but early indicators point to a changing picture, according to a pattern found in data from research firm Pharmarack.
Retail sales data for a basket of pharmaceutical brands shows that overall sales were essentially unchanged between August 2025 and January 2026, fluctuating between Rs 20,800 and Rs 21,100 crore before falling to about Rs 20,000 crore by March 2026.Divergence at the category level is emerging beneath this flat topline.
According to Pharmarack data, category-level dispersion was significant within this flat overall trend, with some acute-care brands declining in the low-to-mid single digits during the same time, while repeat-use wellness brands had mid-to-high single-digit percentage growth (Aug 2025–Mar 2026).
Performance at the brand level clearly diverges. After August, there were consistent improvements in wellness-related and repeat-use items like Centrum Silver and A to Z, as well as long-term treatments like Glycitop and Gabaneuron Gold. On the other hand, throughout the same time period, a number of acute-care brands, including Ornigyl and Zenfer XT, displayed a milder or declining trend.

Sujay Shetty, Global Leader of Health Industries at PwC India, told ET Online, "The rise of wellness brands is part of a broader trend in which younger consumers, including Gen Z, as well as older, more informed consumers are seeking products that align with ideas of longevity and health consciousness."
Shetty of PwC India continued, "This change is also being significantly influenced by the increasing consumerization of patients in the digital world."
In any case, "online shopping remains a small part of overall acute medicine shopping," according to Sumeet Chandna, Partner in Life Sciences at EY-Parthenon India, who also indicated that this change is a part of a larger industry trend.Sujay Shetty, Global Leader of Health Industries at PwC India, told ET Online, "The rise of wellness brands is part of a broader trend in which younger consumers, including Gen Z, as well as older, more informed consumers are seeking products that align with ideas of longevity and health consciousness."
Shetty of PwC India continued, "This change is also being significantly influenced by the increasing consumerization of patients in the digital world."
In any case, "online shopping remains a small part of overall acute medicine shopping," according to Sumeet Chandna, Partner in Life Sciences at EY-Parthenon India, who also indicated that this change is a part of a larger industry trend.

The relative outperformance of repeat-use categories in the retail data indicates that the quick-commerce model, which is based on dark shopfronts, closeness, and immediate fulfilment, is especially well-suited to high-frequency, low-friction transactions.
From designs to prescriptions
The difference in brand performance indicates that, at least for the time being, customers' purchasing decisions may be influenced more by speedy commerce than by the quantity of medications they purchase.

Vitamins and long-term treatments are examples of repeat-use categories that are usually defined by:

• Frequent cycles of consuming
• Reduced promptness in contrast to acute therapies
• Increased suitability for reordering via apps

These characteristics closely correspond with quick-commerce behaviour, where purchases are motivated by convenience, quickness, and predictability. Conversely, acute-care medications, which are frequently associated with episodic sickness and prescriptions, seem less receptive to this change, as reflected.