Çapa Medical General Manager Zekeriya Avşar: “Çapa Medical has a single aim, to make a Turkish store a global brand. This is our biggest goal.” said.
Wide range of products, superior quality approach, offering fast service network with diversity and continuous improvement of services, Çaba Medical General Manager Zekeriya Avsar; we conducted an interview in their new building.
What are your goals as Çaba Medical?
Çaba Medical has just one aim, to make Turkish store a global brand. This is our ultimate goal. From 2016, we aim to sell the products which we produce, our friends produce and also produce products abroad and seel it to the world. 2 people from the family 4 people from the generation works in our company. Their willingness are more than my request of selling abroad.
Why does private hospitals prefer Çapa Medical?
When we see the great changes in health in 2003, we needed to invest in private hospitals. And we have developed a system accordingly. This system is modeled after the customer satisfaction of a clothing company. We have great harms at first. A product delivery condition within 24 hours, to be a certain quality, and we have implemented a permanent condition. When we were first established, “we will not sell the products that we wont apply to our body”, was our motto. Now, since 2008, we have developed a new slogan that said: “Not cheap, affordable products.” In 2003, we held a private hospital structure that was very serious indeed. We got experienced in establishing a supply chain system in the last 5 years in the hospital chain. This really is a very difficult task, but somehow you learn in this business over time. Delivery time is within 24 hours is Istanbul, out of istanbul is 48 hours. We welcome the order given currently 96 percent. Our goal is to reach 98 percent.
Our goal is to work with hospitals that has many branches. Our contributions to the establishment of the system is much more there. I can say that we are preferred because we do our job well.
How many products are there in your portfolio?
We sell close to 7000 products . The five thousand of them are in movement. There are more movements on the part of the 1500-2000 units. We currently work both the private hospitals, tender and firm. Because the conditions are very hard, we made with our own brand products at home and abroad. 2 years ago we opened a branch office in Izmir. We have sub-dealers throughout Turkey. Sector is so dynamic that you can not keep up with the plans you made.
You’ve gone to a new building, you enlarged your storage space. Could you tell us a little about that?
We have moved our store. Our office has reached 1,000 square meters. We have gained several meeting spaces that we can make meetings simultaneously. In our new place, we have two warehouses that are 2500 square meters. We have a larger central warehouse in Gebze. We have 85 workers. We examined our pluses and minuses with a world famous company for 8 months. A 5-person team examined our pros and cons, with a different point of view that we need to examine what to do. They prepared us a report. In this report, we draw a road map to us 5 +5 years with our own plans. This is also why we moved. We also brought our store and office to a situation that can also be able to receive training and meeting at the same time.
Your logo has also changed. Does the new logo has a meaning?
Yes, our logo has changed. Our logo has meaning. The previous consent of the Navy Fleet flagship in the water nymph statue, we aim to be the flagship of the sector thatswhy we used this logo. And we chose the color turquoise.
You are starting a new production. Can you give some information?
Yes, we are starting the production as family. We’re working since November. Our machines will arrive from abroad at the end of March. Starting with a trial production in April, I guess we do enter the market in May. Plasters, tape, sterile pads, etc. we will produce. We are also producing a considerable amount of product abroad.
You said you have the lowest price in the region. So again?
In our region, since 5 years ago only Jordan had lower rates than us. In the last 5 years our prices are even lower 10 percent of Jordan. Although we dont have our export department abroad, firms come to take products with trucks.
You give great importance to the company training.
We reserve the Saturdays to traings completely, except for 2 months. Company employees are being trained from professionals who understand the business every weekend. In the last 7 years, we have created systems labeling every product and following up to the end user. We turned to a fully digital environment. We converted our computer system.
What are the difficulties the industry?
In 2003 we adapt to major changes in the health that AK Party carried out. But in recent years, we are going towards a system based on price. This is the biggest problem in the industry. We can not develop ourselves. Public and private hospitals are able to achieve a return in the short term but long term, i believe they see a lot of the damage it. Our contribution was much higher to the industry until 5 years ago. We could do something about reducing costs, new products, development of products. Currently we negotiate the price with them just to spend the day, making us negotiate the price with suppliers. This has become a vicious circle. Now we can not provide contributions. Here we are aware of the following: health sector budget of £ 70 billion. 85 percent of this is of the state, 15 percent of citizens out of pocket. The $ 20 billion part is spent on drugs and medical. 25 percent is medical, 75 percent is drugs. The state has no chance to reduce costs of the remaining 50 billion TL. There is a tremendous pressure on this is TL 20 billion over the last 5 years. I do not believe that it will have a contribution to reduce prices. Penalty system has been developed for simple products. Now it is time to develope bonuses. Not reducing the prices, unnecessary drug use, landfill drugs, losses coming from lower quality products, I believe that the most outgoing and the price goes low instead of creating pressure on the cheap with the product and the price is right of addressing the high product. The biggest problem of the sector; a change of the rules set out in one day. So we do not dare to do our investments, we postponed then. To reach a certain level, extracted rules must be applied in the sector at least 5 years. Also, there are two important points I raised in the Medical Supply Chain Management Congress. One of these is payment subject. Whether you wish to pay in advance time one hundred percent certain that while you get 1 year. Secondly, the amount of and the delivery of it, even if one year after the date of the auction will receive the tender when done. We have stated that they are the main problems.
