Case study Dr. Max
Customers of the largest drugstore chain were missing fast medicine delivery.
Dr. Max has branches all over the Czech Republic. But despite its efforts to be as close to its customers as possible, it wasn’t possible to order medicine online and have them available the same day until recently. Nevertheless, people most often buy pain killers and medicine they need for acute health problems.
The company ČLH (Česká lékárna holding), which runs the Dr. Max network of pharmacies, approached us with a request for a complex solution for express delivery of orders from the pharmacy e-shop. It is one of the largest e-shops in the Czech Republic, which offers a large quantity of goods than the capacity of a regular store allows. The importance of the e-shop was evident, for example, during the coronavirus pandemic.
We adapted to the rapidly changing and constantly growing demand.
We established cooperation with the largest Czech pharmacy network at the beginning of 2022. The client chose us mainly because we can flexibly adapt to emerging needs.
The number of orders grew exponentially during the first year and DODO couriers were soon delivering up to 1,200 orders per week. It didn’t take long before we crossed the 300 orders per day mark and this number is still increasing. We have continuously monitored the growing demand and have been able to react quickly based on forecasts. Neither the client nor the customers experienced any change in the quality of service, although the volume of orders continued to grow with minor fluctuations.
Working with data from 3 different client systems could have been a potential challenge. The GAIA platform needed to set up a technology link between the two parties, i.e. the client and us. In practice, it was not a connection between 2 systems as usual, but between 4 different platforms. This is because Dr. Max uses three different types of checkout systems depending on the point of pick-up (pharmacy with checkout system without warehouse, pharmacy with warehouse, warehouse). Our comprehensive GAIA platform was able to cope with multiple parcel pick-up scenarios and enabled error-free and fast data processing, which is a fundamental requirement for the realization of express order delivery.
A total of four DODO trucks drive to Dr. Max customers. This fleet is unique in that the client’s branding is visible on the cars.
Currently, the delivery accuracy is close to an incredible 98.5% and we have been able to maintain this almost 100% efficiency over the long term. The way it works in practice is that a Dr. Max customer chooses to have a package delivered within a two-hour slot. We deliver the goods on the day of order (same-day delivery) or within the next two days (next day delivery), depending on the customer’s needs and availability. The first delivery slot is available from 8am and the last slot is available at 8pm.
We have contributed to the growth of sales of the Dr. Max pharmacy network.
Česká lékárna holding, the operator of the Dr. Max pharmacy network, is witnessing a significant demand for same-day delivery.
Based on the current performance, DODO couriers are expected to deliver up to 500 express online orders in one day during the summer months of 2023. The Dr. Max e-shop has grown by double digits over the past year and is already generating 20% of the client’s turnover.
Express delivery of orders from the Dr. Max e-shop was launched in Prague in 2022, but expansion to other cities in the Czech Republic is already in the process. A new dispatch depot is being built for customers from the Central Bohemia region and people from Brno and Ostrava could soon be able to use express delivery as well.
Satisfaction with the quality of customer service also plays an important role. According to monitored feedback, customers particularly appreciate the punctuality of order delivery. The cooperation is specific in the respect that couriers are legally not allowed to know what is contained in the package or for whom the medicine is intended. All packages are therefore anonymous and contain only the basic information necessary for delivery.
