Unilab operates in an oligopolistic market structure which can be characterized by a small number of dominant firms that hold significant market power and influence over pricing and product offerings. Firms such as Ajanta Pharmacies, Pascual Laboratories, EL Laboratories, and Hizon Laboratories continue to dominate the market alongside Unilab, the current leading pharmaceutical company as of 2022. According to the Philippine Competition Commission, Unilab holds 55 percent of total sales in the year 2016, making up more than half of the Pharmaceutical companies in the Philippines. From the year 2001 up until 2016, Unilab's share of local generic market has increased more than 5 times within the same period.
One of the primary reasons Unilab operates in an oligopoly is the presence of significant barriers to entry in the pharmaceutical industry. The Philippine Pharmaceutical industry is characterized to have stringent regulatory requirements to ensure public safety as well as quality and product control in the Philippine market. Firms must meet rigorous standards set by regulatory bodies such as the FDA, and the Philippine Food and Drug Administration in order to introduce new pharmaceutical products, whether that be medication or supplements. As a result, the compliance of such standards requires substantial financial resources, scientific research and expertise, and investment, both monetary and timely. According to Thomas J. Catalano, a member of the Investopedia team, the average cost to introduce a new medication can go from 4 Billion USD and sometimes up to 10 Billion USD. Worldwide, the average expenditure for medication and supplements has totaled 1.48 Trillion US Dollars or 75.3 Trillion Philippine Pesos.
Within this Oligopoly, Unilab stands as one of the leading Pharmaceutical Companies based in the Philippines, holding the highest shares in the local Pharmaceutical market. Being the highest share holder of the industry, Unilab faces competition from the likes of Pfizer Inc, GSK, Abbot Laboratories, and Roche, which make up a majority of the market. Unilab has a significant market share within the industry, making up more than half of the market with its local generic medication share of 55.6 percent in 2016. Throughout its years of dominance within the Philippine market, Unilab's ascent to leadership began in 2013, capturing an impressive 49.6 percent of the overall market. As a result, local producers witnessed a decline in their market influence, plummeting from 45.6 percent in 2012 to 32.7 percent. According to the Philippine Competition Commision, the significant upward trend of Unilab can be attributed to the substantial increase in Rite Med's sales, experiencing a remarkable 43 Percent year-on-year growth from 2012 to 2013 as Ritemed accounted for 93 percent of its total sales. Furthermore, the acquisition of Pharex, the generics division of its nearest competitor; Pascual Laboratories, helped Unilab maintain its dominant status within the industry.
Unilab produces and provides a wide range of medication, supplements, ove- the-counter prescriptions, vitamins, and healthcare/skincare products. For example, Biogesic (Paracetamol) - A common pain reliever and fever reducer, Neozep Forte (Paracetamol, Phenylpropanolamine, Chlorphenamine) - For colds and allergies, Solmux (Carbocisteine) - is Used for manage respiratory conditions like cough and colds, and Ventolin (Salbutamol) - A bronchodilator for asthma. Unilab has established itself as one of the most reputable, trustworthy pharmaceutical brands in the Philippines as a result of its heavy research and development process, allowing for the development and formulation of new products to address medical conditions effectively. Through this, Unilab is able to cater to a wide variety of health needs, building a strong product portfolio, and covering various therapeutic areas such as cardiovascular health, respiratory disorders, gastrointestinal conditions, and more. Its price-to-performance ratio allows the majority of Filipinos to have adequate access to Unilab's generic supplements as one of its major focuses is to provide medical products for the Filipino people. In fact, Unilab has its own foundation catered to social development for students, providing them with various programs such as STEM+PH, which is dedicated to improving learning access to STEM education, enabling students to provide learning access to various resources and materials.
The pharmaceutical industry in the Philippines is a very competitive industry. This is why Unilab competes in non-price competition to be able to set themselves apart from their competitors. They do this in many different ways. This could be through things like their advertisements, slogans, research and development, product packaging, product quality, and other things. The first example of non-price competition for Unilab is their tagline which is "Trusted Quality Healthcare". This tagline makes the company appear more trustworthy and to attract more customers. The word quality also shows up in the tagline. This assures buyers that the products that they buy from Unilab are of good quality. Another way that Unilab competes in non-price competition is through advertisements. They have commercials that are shown on television and on YouTube and they also have other adertisements like billboards. An example of an advertisement from Unilab is the video on the right. Unilab also does research and development to be able to come up with and produce new products to be able to cater to the needs of ther customers. All in all, Unilab competes in non-price competition to be able to gain an edge on their competitors and to be able to gain more customers.
The price competition of UniLab is manufactured by international corporations continue to account for 75% of all sales in the Phillipines. These big companies focus on the 12% of the population that can afford their more expensive brands. The primary business model of Unilab, which offers goods at prices 20% to 70% lower than those of major international brands without sacrificing quality, is in line with the company's goal of making medicine accessible to all people. The success of its growth in the Philippines led UniLab to replicate in China, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar and etc. The company was successfully transition to professional management. In addition, it has made a organized effort to institute the company's strong, familial-like culture.
Since Unilab (oligopolistic market structure) is a pharmaceutical company, they weild form of market power and dominance over other firms, features product differentiation between its various forms of medications, and have stringent barriers of entry, we can conclude that Unilab is a price searcher. Furthermore, Unilab (an oligopolistic market) often exhibits price rigidity, meaning they are hesitant to change prices frequently. This is because they understand that price changes can lead to retaliatory actions from rivals. As a result, Unilab is able to influence smaller firms to adjust prices, setting price trends or in other words, price leadership.