Alphas Group

What Alphas Group does

Alphas Group (アルファスグループ) is a privately held, Niigata Prefecture-based life-care conglomerate founded in 1986 as Hokuriku Pharma Niigata Sales and rebranded to its current name in 2015. The group operates six wholly-owned subsidiaries covering pharmaceutical dispensing, elderly nursing care, disability employment support, clinical trial site management, food and catering services, and clinic launch consulting. Operationally this means 43 ALPHAS pharmacies (via NMI) plus 41 ALPHAS Sawayaka-en nursing care facilities (via CreaMedico) distributed across Niigata's Niigata, Nagaoka, Sanjo, Kashiwazaki, Mitsuke, Joetsu, and Sado areas, supplemented by additional disability support offices, SMO coverage of approximately 70 medical institutions, a sushi restaurant (Ichi) in Nagaoka, and a catering business serving elderly facilities and corporate cafeterias.

The technology layer centers on the Alphas App, a free mobile application that integrates online medical consultation with partner clinics, online medication guidance, prescription photo submission (撮って送るだけ処方せんメール), electronic prescription handling, and medication delivery or pickup routing — effectively digitizing the patient journey from consultation to dispensing. ALPHAS pharmacies deploy an online qualification verification system that retrieves patient medical and medication data during dispensing for safer drug therapy, and the new ALPHAS Health Studio (opened June 2026) layers an AI gait analysis tool (Toruto, scoring 4 metrics × 5 points for fall risk extraction) on top of the proprietary SD (Spinal Dynamics) rehabilitation methodology.

Revenue mechanics are dominated by insurance-reimbursed Japanese care and pharmacy pricing (薬学管理・調剤報酬・介護報酬 schedules), supplemented by management fees from senior housing, welfare equipment rental/sales, clinical trial SMO contracts, corporate cafeteria management, event catering, and restaurant sales. FY2025 group consolidated revenue was ¥12.84 billion (approximately US$85 million), split roughly two-thirds pharmacy (NMI ¥8.549 billion) and one-fifth nursing care (CreaMedico ¥2.722 billion), with the residual spread across the remaining four subsidiaries. Customers are overwhelmingly B2C and segmented into general patients, elderly individuals and families, persons with disabilities, physicians seeking clinic launch support, and pharmaceutical companies using SMO services; distribution is exclusively within Niigata Prefecture, with 800+ regional partner stores participating in the Alphas Regional Association loyalty layer.

Name

Alphas Group

Legal name

アルファスグループ

Website

https://nmi-net.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Alphas Group is a privately held Niigata Prefecture-based life-care conglomerate operating 43 pharmacies, 41 nursing care facilities, disability support services, clinical trial SMO, catering, and clinic launch consulting across six subsidiaries for residents, elderly, and disabled populations of Niigata, Japan.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Integrated Healthcare and Life Care Services

NAICS

Pharmacy Benefit Management and Other Third Party Administration of Insurance and Pension Funds (524292), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (62412), Social Assistance (624)

SIC

Retail-Drug Stores And Proprietary Stores (5912), Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050), Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Medication Adherence & Therapy Management Platforms (refills, reminders, MTM) (HLALAIAG)

Keywords

• Pharmacy services
• Nursing care
• Elderly care
• Disability support
• Clinical trial SMO

Headquarters

HQ city

Nagaoka

HQ country

Japan

HQ region

Asia

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Dispensing pharmacy revenue (医薬事業): Revenue from operating 43 dispensing pharmacies (insured dispensing + pharmacy-manufactured drugs) and retail/general OTC drug sales. NMI subsidiary generates approximately ¥8.54 billion in annual sales. Services include home-visit medication management guidance, online medication guidance, and pharmacy-manufactured drug sales.
2. Nursing care services (介護事業): Revenue from operating 41 nursing care facilities including daycare centers (通所介護), multi-functional care centers (小規模多機能型居宅介護), service-supported senior housing (シルバーハウス/サービス付き高齢者向け住宅), visiting care stations, visiting nursing stations, and welfare equipment rental/sales. The Creamedico subsidiary generates approximately ¥2.72 billion in annual sales.
3. Disability support services (障がい者支援事業): Revenue from operating Type A and B vocational continuation support (就労継続支援A型・B型), employment transition support (就労移行支援), employment retention support (就労定着支援), and regional activity support centers under Alphas Bright subsidiary.
4. Clinical trial support / SMO & staffing (新薬治験事業・人材サポート事業): Revenue from operating as a Site Management Organization (SMO) supporting clinical trials across approximately 70 medical institutions in Niigata Prefecture, and from temporary staffing placement of medical administrative staff (労働者派遣業) under ALPHAS Clinical Support.
5. Food & catering services (食事業): Revenue from silver catering for elderly facilities, catering management for corporate employee cafeterias, event bento catering sales, and restaurant operation (sushi/kaiseki restaurant '一'). Original products like Lemon Ginger Syrup are also developed and sold.
6. Hospital/Clinic launch support (医院開業支援): Revenue from providing comprehensive clinic launch consulting services including planning, launch, and post-launch support for physicians in Niigata Prefecture. Over 100 completed projects in the prefecture.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Alphas Group operates an integrated healthcare and life-care business across Niigata Prefecture, providing insured dispensing pharmacy services through 43 ALPHAS Pharmacy stores, elderly nursing care through 41 ALPHAS Sawayakaen facilities, disability employment support via Alphas Bright, clinical trial/SMO services through ALPHAS Clinical Support, food/catering services through Catering Food and sushi restaurant Ichi, and hospital/clinic launch consulting. The group's offerings are interconnected through the Alphas App digital platform enabling online medical consultations, electronic prescriptions, online medication guidance, and prescription delivery.

Product overview

Alphas Group is a Niigata Prefecture-based healthcare and welfare conglomerate operating multiple business segments through six subsidiaries. The portfolio includes: ALPHAS Pharmacy (43 dispensing pharmacy stores operated by NMI), ALPHAS Sawayakaen (41 elderly care facilities including daycare centers, multi-functional care centers, and service-attached senior housing operated by CleaMedico), Alphas Bright (disability employment support services at multiple offices), ALPHAS Clinical Support (clinical trial/SMO services and medical staffing), Ichii (upscale sushi restaurant), and Catering Food (elderly facility catering and food services). The group also offers Alphas App for online medical services, hospital opening support, and the Alphas Regional Association membership program spanning over 800 partner stores. Services are interconnected, with pharmacies supporting care facilities, and shared infrastructure across subsidiaries enabling comprehensive life-care solutions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• 寿司・和一 (Sushi Washichi): Upscale sushi and Japanese cuisine restaurant offering private dining experiences
• Lemon Ginger Syrup (レモン生姜シロップ)
• Alphas App (アルファスアプリ)

Products and services

• ALPHAS Pharmacy (ALPHAS薬局)
• ALPHAS Sawayakaen (ALPHASさわやか苑)
• ALPHAS Health Studio (ALPHAS健康スタジオ)
• Alphas Bright (アルファスブライト)
• ALPHAS Clinical Support (ALPHASクリニカルサポート)
• Hospital/Clinic Launch Support (医院開業支援)
• Alphas App (アルファスアプリ)
• Alphas Regional Association (アルファス地域の会)
• Catering Food (株式会社ケータリングフード)
• Ichi Restaurant (寿司・和食一)
• Pharmacy-made Pharmaceuticals (薬局製剤)

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Niigata Prefecture GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2025株式会社エヌ・エム・アイ and Niigata Prefecture signed a 'Partnership Agreement for Promoting Citizens' Health' (県民の健康つくりの推進に関する連携協定). The partnership aims to promote health awareness and extend healthy life expectancy among Niigata residents. Alphas Group participates in the prefecture's 'Health Prefecture' (健康立県) promotion activities.
• Major Pharmaceutical Distributors ( Alfresa, Suzuken, Toyo Pharmaceutical, Vital-Net, Marutake, Medseio)coreOthersNMI subsidiary has established supply chain relationships with major Japanese pharmaceutical wholesale distributors including Alfresa (アルフレッサ), Suzuken (スズケン), Toyo Pharmaceutical (東邦薬品), Vital-Net (バイタルネット), Marutake (マルタケ), and Medseio (メディセオ). These partnerships ensure reliable pharmaceutical product supply for the 43 ALPHAS pharmacy stores.
• Nursing Care / Medical Device Suppliers (Paramount Care Service, France Bed, Japan Care Supply, Suzuken, Vital-Net, Tosho, Marutake)coreOthersCreaMedico subsidiary partners with nursing care and medical device suppliers for welfare equipment rental, sales, and facility operations. Partners include Paramount Care Service (パラマウントケアサービス), France Bed (フランスベッド), Japan Care Supply (日本ケアサプライ), and pharmaceutical/medical distributors.
• NIIGATA ALBIREX BBcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAlphas Group serves as Uniform Partner (ユニフォームパートナー) for NIIGATA ALBIREX BB basketball team. This includes 'Alphas Thanks Days' game events where group services are promoted to fans. The partnership includes exclusive viewing lounges (アルファススマイルラウンジ) for children with disabilities.
• OIX NIIGATA ALBIREX BCcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAlphas Group is Uniform Sponsor (ユニフォームスポンサー) and Dream Cap Project Sponsor (ドリームキャッププロジェクトスポンサー) for OIX NIIGATA ALBIREX BC baseball team. Regular 'Alphas Thanks Days' promote group services. '勝弁当' special bento boxes are sold at games featuring direct delivery by the manager and players.
• Niigata Prefecture Municipalities (Various)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerALPHAS pharmacies serve as designated cooling shelters (クーリングシェルター / 指定暑熱避難施設) and pre-distribution points for stable iodine tablets (安定ヨウ素剤) as part of Niigata Prefecture municipalities' emergency preparedness programs.

Scale indicators14 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Tsuruha Holdings: Japan's largest drug store and dispensing pharmacy chain operator, integrating retail pharmacy with adjacent health/wellness services. Tsuruha's broader nationwide footprint contrasts with Alphas' concentrated Niigata model, but both operate insurance dispensing pharmacy chains as a core business with adjacent care and digital extensions.
• Welcia Holdings: Major nationwide chain combining drug store retail, dispensing pharmacy, and in-store nursing care consultation services. Welcia is comparable to Alphas as an integrated pharmacy-plus-care model, but at significantly broader geographic scale and with a public listing.
• Cosmos Pharmaceutical: Large-format drug store chain with integrated dispensing pharmacy operations across Japan. Comparable to Alphas as a hybrid retail/insurance dispensing pharmacy operator, focused on prescription services plus OTC.
• CMIC Holdings: Japan's largest CRO/SMO company providing clinical trial site management and pharmaceutical development services. Comparable to Alphas' ALPHAS Clinical Support SMO segment as the established nationwide incumbent in the same services category.
• Benesse Style Care: Large national provider of paid senior nursing homes, daycare, and home care services. Direct peer to the Alphas Sawayaka-en nursing care segment at a broader geographic scale and through a focus on high-end residential care.

Direct peers

• Nichii Gakkan: National operator of nursing care facilities, daycare centers, senior housing, and home care services — directly overlapping with Alphas' Sawayaka-en nursing care segment. Nichii Gakkan also provides medical staffing/clerical support, creating direct comparability with Alphas' integrated care plus staffing model.
• Human Holdings: Operator of nursing care facilities, home care, daycare, and healthcare staffing services in Japan. Direct peer to Alphas' nursing care and disability support segments, with comparable revenue mix across care facility operations and licensed staffing.

Emerging players

• SMS Co., Ltd. Operates pharmacy chain, medical staffing platform, and digital patient engagement products across Japan. Comparable to Alphas as an integrated pharmacy + digital health + staffing company, though more nationally distributed.
• Welby, Inc. Japanese digital health platform providing patient engagement, medication adherence, and chronic disease self-management apps. Comparable to the Alphas App's medication support, online consultation, and prescription management features at a software-only model.

Regional players

• ASKA Pharmaceutical Holdings: Japanese specialty pharmaceutical company with focus on women's health and internal medicine. Comparable on the pharmaceutical distribution and supplier side of Alphas' pharmacy operations; both operate within Japan's NHI pharmacy supply framework.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@%E3%82%A2%E3%83%AB%E3%83%95%E3%82%A1%E3%82%B9%E3%82%B0%E3%83%AB%E3%83%BC%E3%83%97
• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php?id=100063628837521
• Instagraminstagram.com/nmi_alphas_group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Alphas Group