After Signing Up 90% of Pharmacies Nationwide... Baropharm's IPO Blueprint

"Building a Healthcare AX Ecosystem"
Returned to profitability in the first half of this year
Plans to raise up to KRW 36 billion in IPO

Kim Seulgi, CEO of Baropharm, said on October 27, "We are preparing to apply the expertise Baropharm has built on its platform and its artificial intelligence (AI) technology not only to pharmacists but also to doctors and consumers. Our ultimate goal is to use this to build a healthcare AI transformation (AX) ecosystem."

CEO Kim Seulgi speaks at an initial public offering (IPO) briefing at the 63 Building in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 27th. Photo by Park Seungwook

At an initial public offering (IPO) briefing held that day at the 63 Building in Yeouido, Seoul, Kim said, "We launched a platform for doctors in September, and next we are preparing a platform that connects consumers with pharmacists so consumers can ask pharmacists questions they have."

Founded in November 2019, Baropharm provides an integrated ordering service for pharmacies that lets them compare drug inventory and prices at a glance and place orders. Through the service, it has enrolled more than 90% of pharmacies nationwide on its platform. Its business areas include platform operations, which generate brokerage fees from Baropharm Mall as well as advertising, cloud, and data revenue; partnership operations, which involve purchasing products directly from pharmaceutical and brand companies and supplying them to pharmacies; and brand operations, which sell its own health supplement, over-the-counter (OTC), salt-and-glucose tablet, and other products.

Revenue last year, in 2025, was KRW 96.7 billion, up 112.5% from the previous year. The company narrowed its operating loss from KRW 5.5 billion to KRW 3.9 billion over the same period. In the first half of 2026, it posted revenue of KRW 69 billion and operating profit of KRW 2.2 billion, successfully returning to profitability.

Kim also expressed optimism about expanding the company's own brands globally. "We have set a strategy to expand our cosmetics brand globally, starting with Japan and Amazon in 2026, and moving on to Taiwan and Vietnam from 2027," she said. "Although Baropharm's cosmetics brand is new, we launched the products based on our expertise in distributing cosmetics through pharmacies, which enabled us to enter global pharmacy chains in Japan and elsewhere."

She also outlined plans to increase margins by lowering the cost ratio. Kim said the funds raised through the offering would be used to expand manufacturing facilities, bringing the cost ratio below 50%.

Baropharm will offer a total of 1.78 million shares in the IPO. The indicative offering price range is KRW 16,400 to KRW 20,200 per share, with the offering expected to raise KRW 29.2 billion to KRW 36 billion. The book-building process for institutional investors will run through October 28, and subscriptions for individual investors will take place on November 2 and 3.

The proceeds will be used for investments in AI technology and the AI ecosystem, as well as for expanding production facilities.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.