CurePharma, a Yorkshire distribution company that helps British pharmaceutical manufacturers export to the Middle East, has opened its first office overseas in Doha, Qatar. The expansion comes after the company exported £500,000 worth of prescription pharmaceuticals and over the counter products to Middle East countries in 2017.
Founded by director Mustafa Al-Shalechy and business development manager Ali Alshamari in Thorp Arch Estate near Wetherby, the company received start-up export advice from overseas trade specialist Chamber International and now works with pharmaceutical, medical devices and healthcare products manufacturers in Bolton, Bradford, Hull, London and Pocklington.
We have now two distributors in Iraq, where we made our initial order, and others in Qatar, Bahrain, Yemen, Jordan and Kuwait. Our new Qatar office will make it far easier for us to liaise with clients, handle tenders and hear about opportunities for our UK partners. It will also give us a lot of credibility in The Middle East to be able to deal with paperwork and sign contracts locally, said Al-Shalechy.
CurePharma is recognised by the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as operating good distribution practice guidelines required by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). Before setting up the new office, the two owners met 150 prospective customers at CurePharmaâs stand at Arab Health, the worldâs second biggest healthcare and pharmaceuticals trade fair in Dubai this February.
In developing Cure Pharma, we have both travelled widely in the Middle East, which involves an initial seven-hour flight, but the Doha office will enable us to spend more time in the UK developing relationships with more British pharmaceutical companies and sourcing a wider range of export products, said Alshamari.
In addition to opening a new office, CurePharma has also developed its own range of food and dietary supplements, such as Omega 3, glucosamine and multi-vitamins, all contract manufactured for the UK and overseas markets.
