Pharmacy Opening Stock: How to Decide What to Order Before You Have Sales Data
Your pharmacy opening stock is the biggest single bill you will pay before you sell anything. Buy too much and cash sits…
Your pharmacy supplier decides what you can sell, what it costs and how safe it is. A good one delivers on time, shows valid papers and takes back what is wrong. A bad one can leave you holding falsified stock, a failed inspection and a patient you cannot help. Many owners choose a pharmacy supplier by price alone. This guide gives you nine checks to run first, using World Health Organization guidance and regulator notices.
The risk is not abstract. WHO estimates that about 1 in 10 medicines in low and middle income countries is substandard or falsified. A careful pharmacy supplier check is the cheapest protection you have, because stock that never enters your shelves never harms a patient or your licence.
Why your pharmacy supplier choice matters so much
The WHO figure of about 10.5% comes from a WHO-commissioned analysis of more than 100 published studies covering roughly 48,000 samples from 88 low and middle income countries. The WHO fact sheet, updated in December 2024, estimates that about US$30.5 billion a year is spent on substandard and falsified products.
WHO modelling in 2017 linked such products to between 72,000 and 169,000 child pneumonia deaths a year from substandard antibiotics and about 116,000 extra malaria deaths a year in sub-Saharan Africa from defective antimalarials. These are modelled estimates, not counts, but they show where the harm falls. Antimalarials and antibiotics were the most reported products in WHO's surveillance system.
Reports came mainly from Africa, at 42%, then the Americas and Europe, at 21% each. WHO reads that as under-reporting elsewhere, not as lower prevalence. We found no verified regional prevalence rate for Africa or Asia, so do not assume one region is safer.
Check 1: is the supplier authorised?
WHO distribution guidance says to buy only from appropriately authorised suppliers. Ask for a copy of the supplier's current licence and compare the name, address and licence number with the invoice. Ask your regulator how to confirm a licence. We could not find a public register link for every country, so the regulator is the right source.
The same guidance expects suppliers to obtain proof that you, the buyer, are authorised to hold the product. Be ready to supply your own licence. A supplier who does not ask for it is not following the standard, and that is a warning sign.
Check 2: retail and wholesale licences are different
In some markets a wholesaler and a retailer need separate premises. Kenya's Pharmacy and Poisons Board does not allow one premises to be both retail and wholesale. So a business that sells to you from the back of a shop may not be licensed to supply a pharmacy at all.
Check what the supplier's licence actually allows. A licence to sell to the public does not authorise bulk supply, and the reverse is also true. If you are unsure, ask the regulator in writing before you buy.
Check 3: records that show where each batch came from
WHO guidance expects receipt and issue records to carry the batch number, date and expiry. Dispatch records must allow tracing and batch recall. Insist that every invoice and delivery note lists batch numbers and expiry dates, and check them against the boxes on arrival.
Records must also be kept. WHO suggests keeping them for the product shelf life plus one year. Ghana's controlled drugs guideline asks for records to be kept at least two years after the last entry. Keep whichever period is longer in your market.
Check 4: cold chain and storage evidence
For fridge products, ask how the supplier transports and records temperature. WHO guidance expects environmental conditions to be monitored and recorded, and expects transport temperature records to be reviewed when goods arrive. For storage, WHO gives 2 to 8 C for refrigerated products and 15 to 25 C for controlled room temperature.
On delivery, open the carrier and read the logger or indicator. If the readout shows a breach, or if there is no record, refuse the delivery and write down the reason. Do not shelve a product you cannot vouch for.
Check 5: price, terms and returns
Compare each pharmacy supplier on what you pay after returns, not on the headline price. Ask about payment terms, cash discounts, minimum order sizes, delivery fees, delivery time and what happens to short-dated or damaged stock.
| Question | Why it matters | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| Do you accept returns of short-dated stock? | Cuts expiry losses | No returns of any kind |
| What credit terms do you offer? | Affects cash and working capital | Terms that change without notice |
| Are prices at or below the regulated price? | Some markets cap prices | Pressure to sell above the printed price |
| Can you show a batch record for each line? | Traceability | Invoices without batch numbers |
| What is your usual delivery time? | Sets your reorder levels | Delivery times that vary widely |
In Bangladesh the drug regulator fixes medicine prices, and a press report says the 2023 Act bars selling above the fixed price. A supplier who encourages you to charge more is putting your licence at risk.
Check 6: a price that looks too good
An unusually low price on a high-value or scarce product deserves suspicion. We have no verified rule for how low is too low, so use the market as your guide. If the same product is sold at 30 or 40 percent below every other quote, ask why. Expiry, diversion, theft and falsification are all possible reasons.
A fair seller will explain, and show documents. An evasive one will push you to order quickly. Treat urgency as a warning, not a reason to hurry.
Check 7: how you inspect every delivery
Even a trusted pharmacy supplier can ship a wrong or damaged box. Build a short routine and use it on every delivery.
- Match the delivery note to your order, line by line.
- Check batch numbers and expiry dates against the note.
- Look at packaging for damage, spelling errors, blurred print or tampering.
- Check cold-chain products and read the temperature record.
- Quarantine the delivery in a marked area until it is signed off.
- Enter it into your records the same day.
WHO guidance asks for incoming goods to be held in quarantine and batches to be kept separate. That is a good habit even before an inspector asks for it.
Check 8: what to do with suspect stock
If you suspect a product is falsified, do not sell it and do not throw it away. WHO guidance says to put suspected falsified stock in a secure, clearly labelled and segregated area. Tell the supplier and the regulator, and keep the packaging and invoice as evidence.
Nigeria gives a clear example of a reporting route. NAFDAC alert 036/2026, dated 18 July 2026, concerned suspected counterfeit products that mimic a dapagliflozin brand. It tells healthcare professionals to quarantine suspect stock and stop selling it, and to report to the nearest NAFDAC office, by phone on 0800-162-3322 or by email to [email protected]. We could not confirm reporting channels for the other markets in this guide, so ask your own regulator for one before you need it.
Check 9: recalls and traceability
When a manufacturer or regulator recalls a batch, you need to find affected stock fast. WHO guidance expects customers and authorities to be told promptly of a recall. You can only do that if you know which batch you hold and where it went.
This is where record keeping pays off. A system that stores batch and expiry on every receipt and sale lets you search by batch in seconds. Synapse records batch numbers and expiry dates, which supports that search, and you can start free and see it live. It does not connect to any national track and trace platform, so read our guide to pharmacy track and trace to see what your country asks.
A scorecard to compare each pharmacy supplier
Put your candidates side by side. Score each line from one to five, and treat the first three as pass or fail. A pharmacy supplier that fails on licence, records or cold chain should not receive an order, whatever the price.
| Check | Supplier A | Supplier B | Supplier C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Licence current and matches invoice (pass or fail) | |||
| Batch and expiry on every invoice (pass or fail) | |||
| Cold-chain evidence (pass or fail) | |||
| Price after returns | |||
| Credit terms | |||
| Delivery reliability | |||
| Return of short-dated stock |
Questions to ask a new pharmacy supplier
Before the first order, ask a new pharmacy supplier a few direct questions and write down the answers. A reputable business answers them without fuss.
- Which regulator licenses you, and what is your licence number and expiry date?
- From whom do you buy your stock, and can you show the chain back to the manufacturer?
- How do you store and transport fridge products, and how do you record temperature?
- How do you handle a recall, and how quickly can you tell me which batches I received?
- What is your policy on returns, damaged goods and short-dated stock?
Informal sellers and online offers
Some of the cheapest offers come by message, social media or a visiting sales agent. These routes are not automatically illegal, but they make every check above harder. A seller you cannot visit, who has no premises you can inspect and who will not give a licence, cannot meet the authorised-supplier standard.
The test is simple. Can you name the licensed business, see its address and trace each batch to a record? If the answer to any of these is no, do not buy, however good the price. A pharmacy that buys from an informal source takes on all of the legal and clinical risk.
Documents to keep for every order
Keep a short set of papers for each purchase, on paper or on screen. They protect you at inspection, in a recall and in a dispute.
- The purchase order, with date, lines and agreed prices
- The delivery note and invoice, with batch numbers and expiry dates
- The temperature record for any cold-chain item
- The receiving check, with the name of the person who signed it off
- Any credit note, return or complaint, with the reply
Pay by bank transfer or a traceable method to the licensed company named on the invoice, not to a personal account. A clear payment trail supports your records and makes disputes easier to settle.
Keeping a file on each supplier
Keep one folder per supplier, on paper or on screen. Put in it the licence copy, the date you checked it, the contact names, your price list, the terms agreed and any complaint. Update it twice a year. When an inspector asks where a batch came from, this file shows that you chose the supplier with care.
The file also helps when staff change. A new buyer can see why each supplier was chosen, which one handles fridge items and which one is slow. It turns knowledge that lives in one person's head into a record the whole pharmacy can use.
When a supplier lets you down
Sooner or later a delivery is late, wrong or damaged. Respond the same day. Photograph the problem, note the batch, and tell the supplier in writing. Ask for a credit note or a replacement, and keep the reply. If a supplier repeats the failure, move volume to another one.
Do not hide a problem to avoid a dispute. A pharmacy that sells wrong or doubtful stock carries the blame, not the supplier. If the problem is a quality issue, report it to the regulator as described above. Quiet fixes may protect a relationship, but they do not protect patients.
Building a short list of suppliers
Most pharmacies work with a main supplier for the bulk of their range and one or two others for gaps. Score each candidate on the nine checks, and trial the best two with small orders before you commit. Review the list twice a year, and drop any supplier who delivers late, ships wrong stock or cannot supply records.
For the wider launch, see our guide on how to open a pharmacy, and learn to plan your first order in pharmacy opening stock. Read the full storage and distribution standard on the WHO website.