What drugs have replaced Viagra?

Russians are buying up drugs for erectile dysfunction. In the fourth quarter of last year, domestic brands alone sold 12% more drugs than in the same period in 2022, Forbes found. The volume of imports of medicines has also increased, although the market has lost its largest players. We are talking, in particular, about the American company Viatris, which stopped supplying the original Viagra to the country. How has the industry managed to adapt to new realities? Ivan Khorushevsky sorted it out.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade announced the cessation of supplies of Viagra on February 15, 2023. Almost immediately, Russians began to buy the already imported drug – sales doubled compared to the previous three days. Although the demand for tablets had not been low before, consumers began replenishing their supplies back in 2022. Then the American company Eli Lilly announced that it would curtail the export to Russia of all medicines that are not vital. The decision affected another popular drug for increasing male potency – Cialis.

The news caused concern among buyers, but despite all the fears, the market hardly noticed the loss of large brands, noted Alexander Kuzin, general director of the 36.6 pharmacy chain: “A few years ago there was already a horde of generics, and not only domestic ones. All drugs have a registration certificate, which means their quality is confirmed by government authorities.

If you look at volumes, more Russian medicines are sold.”

Moreover, sales are growing at a rapid pace: in the fourth quarter of 2023 they increased by 80% compared to the same period in 2021, Forbes reports. These statistics are only for Russian brands. In addition to them, manufacturers from Croatia, Slovenia, Israel and even Belarus have entered the market. In total, Kommersant FM’s interlocutors counted more than 20 analogues of Viagra and Cialis in different price segments.

Diversity stimulates consumer demand, explained Sergei Shulyak, CEO of the DSM Group agency: “Many drugs used to be considered innovative, they were under patent protection. Its term has expired, and their analogues have appeared. When there were original medicines, they were quite expensive, and not everyone could afford to buy them. And now, it turns out, the price of generics is lower, and, accordingly, they have become more popular.”

But mainly Russian manufacturers benefited from the departure of Viagra and Cialis. According to analysts, domestic brands now own from 70 to 80% of the market. More than 35 companies have already received permission to produce drugs for erectile dysfunction. However, they all continue to depend on imported raw materials, said Nikolai Bespalov, development director at RNC Pharma:

“We are talking about chemical synthesis products that are purchased abroad. The main suppliers are China, South Korea and India. Raw materials come from these countries, and, as far as I can tell, there are no and are not predicted to be any problems with supplies.

These supplies were not subject to any sanctions restrictions. It is the pharmaceutical substance, that is, the active substance, that is purchased. Here it is mixed and, accordingly, is already packaged and loaded to wholesalers.”

In general, according to Kommersant FM’s interlocutors, the period of rapid development of this segment has ended. Sales of drugs will continue to grow, but not at the same pace as in the previous two years.

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