International Pharmacy

Name

International Pharmacy

Legal name

Welfen-Apotheke OHG

Website

https://internationale-apotheke.eu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Internationale Apotheke (Welfen-Apotheke OHG) is a Munich-based retail pharmacy founded in 1986 that specializes in importing international medicines and selling essential oils, serving multilingual walk-in consumers at its Ostbahnhof location and supplying other German pharmacies through two subsidiaries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Retail Pharmacy

NAICS

Pharmacies and Drug Retailers (456110)

SIC

Retail-Drug Stores And Proprietary Stores (5912)

akta.pro primary industry

Retail & Community Pharmacies (Chain/Independent) (HLAFALAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Health & Pharmacy Omnichannel (CRAFAEAK)

Keywords

• Retail pharmacy services
• International medicine imports
• Essential oils supply
• Prescription dispensing
• Homeopathy and cosmetics

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Product Sales: Direct sales of pharmaceuticals, international medications, homeopathic remedies, Bach flowers, essential oils, cosmetics, and wellness products to end-consumer customers at the pharmacy location and through advance ordering.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Internationale Apotheke (Welfen Apotheke) is a single-location retail pharmacy located in the underground level of Munich Ostbahnhof, dispensing domestic and imported international medicines, essential oils, homeopathic remedies, Bach flowers, and cosmetics. The pharmacy operates extended weekday hours (7:00-20:00) with multilingual counter service in eight languages, and pre-orders prescriptions via phone, email, and the gesund.de app for same-day pickup. It also sources international medicines globally under § 73 AMG, typically delivered within 3-6 days, and manufactures essential oils via its subsidiary Apotheker Bauer & Cie.

Product overview

Internationale Apotheke (International Pharmacy), also known as Welfen Apotheke, is a pharmacy located in Munich's Ostbahnhof underground level. The pharmacy operates as a single-location retail pharmacy offering a unified range of products and services centered on two core specialties: (1) international/foreign medicines imported from around the world, and (2) essential oils (ätherische Öle). Supporting product categories include homeopathy, Bach flowers, cosmetics, and general pharmaceutical products. The pharmacy provides service features including prescription pre-ordering, an order service for out-of-stock items (2-3 hour pickup), blood pressure health checks, and medication expiration audits. The essential oils operations led to the spin-off of a subsidiary company (Apotheker Bauer & Cie.) that now supplies essential oils to pharmacies across Germany via www.duftlampen.de. International medicine imports are handled through a separate company that also supplies other pharmacies nationwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Apotheker Bauer & Cie. Subsidiary brand producing and distributing essential oils, aromatic plant extracts, and wellness articles (operates www.duftlampen.de). Oils are plant-derived, 100% natural, unadulterated, processed via steam distillation or alcohol extraction.

Products and services

• International Medicines (Internationale Arzneimittel) Import and distribution of foreign/international medicines from around the world, with typical delivery within 3-6 days. This is the pharmacy's primary specialty area.
• Essential Oils (Ätherische Öle) Essential oils, fragrance lamps, fragrant stones, and bath additives sourced from pure natural products worldwide, produced via steam distillation or alcohol extraction. 100% natural, unaltered, and unadulterated.
• Prescription Pre-Ordering (Rezept Vorbestellen) Prescription pre-ordering service allowing customers to upload prescriptions or e-prescriptions and pick up prepared orders within hours, with same-day pickup available for orders placed before 4 PM.
• Order Service (Bestell-Service) Ordering service for medications and products not in stock, with delivery typically within 2-3 hours for pickup.
• Health Checks (Gesundheits-Checks) Blood pressure measurement service for quick and reliable health monitoring.
• Medication Check (Arzneimittel-Check) Medication and bandage inventory check service that verifies completeness and expiration dates of patients' medication supplies.
• Cosmetics (Kosmetik) Wide selection of cosmetics for body and beauty care, including brands such as Aveeno, Avène, Bioderma, CeraVe, Cetaphil, Eucerin, La Roche Posay, Vichy, Dr. Hauschka, and Weleda.
• Homeopathy & Bach Flowers (Homöopathie & Bachblüten) Homeopathic products including DHU and Schüssler Biochemie, as well as Bach flower remedies.

Quantifiable outcome

• Domestic medication fulfillment within 2-3 hours
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• gesund.decoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorIntegration with gesund.de health app for prescription pre-ordering. Customers can order prescriptions through the app and pick up prepared medications at the pharmacy, enhancing convenience for commuters and working professionals.
• ImportInternational.deminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorReferral channel for business customers (Geschäftskunden) seeking to order international medications through a separate B2B platform.
• Apotheker Bauer & Cie. (duftlampen.de)coreOthersDaughter company spun off from the pharmacy specializing in essential oils and wellness products. Supplies the Welfen Apotheke and other pharmacies across Germany with high-quality essential oils produced through steam distillation and alcohol extraction. Products are 100% pure natural, plant-based, unaltered and unadulterated.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Rossmann: Major German drugstore chain with extensive OTC, wellness, and dermo-cosmetic assortment. Comparable in product categories outside prescription; broader format than a single independent pharmacy.
• dm drogerie markt: Germany's largest drugstore chain with broad OTC, wellness, and cosmetics assortment. Competes on convenience and price in adjacent non-prescription categories; does not dispense prescriptions, so partial rather than full overlap.
• Müller (Müller Drogerie): German retail chain with in-store pharmacy services plus broad drugstore assortment. Comparable across OTC, wellness, and cosmetics categories; broader footprint than Internationale Apotheke.

Direct peers

• EasyApotheke: Chain of physical retail pharmacies across Germany. Closest comparable on retail format and product offering; differs in lacking Internationale Apotheke's specialty international-medicine and multilingual positioning.
• Sanicare: Mail-order pharmacy operating across Germany with prescription and OTC fulfillment. Comparable target market and product mix, with a fulfillment model that substitutes for in-store pickup services.
• Aponeo: Berlin-based online pharmacy offering prescription, OTC, and wellness products to German consumers. Comparable product portfolio and customer base, with the convenience-fulfillment positioning that competes head-on with Internationale Apotheke's omnichannel approach.
• Redcare Pharmacy (DocMorris / Shop-Apotheke): Leading German online pharmacy group formed from the merger of DocMorris and Shop-Apotheke Europe. Directly comparable on product offering (prescription, OTC, dermo-cosmetics) and target market (German consumers), though competing through a digital rather than physical channel.
• Medpex: German online pharmacy with broad prescription, OTC, and wellness assortment. Comparable on customer base and product categories, competing primarily on price and convenience.

Emerging players

• Vitalsana: German online pharmacy emphasizing OTC, wellness, and cosmetics. Comparable in product breadth and target consumer; smaller scale than the leading e-pharmacies.
• Primavera: German essential oils and aromatherapy brand already carried by Internationale Apotheke as a partner supplier. Comparable on the essential-oils product category and an adjacent player in the same wellness niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/internationale-apotheke

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries2 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 International Pharmacy