Thrissur-based ayurveda group Vaidyaratnam is looking at closing the current fiscal with a Rs 240 crore revenue and double the same by 2030 when it hopes to go public. The 99-year-old entity is the only ayurveda group that follows the holistic Ashtavaidya tradition. It was started by the late Eledath Thaikkattu Neelakandan Mooss in Thaikkattussery in Thrissur in 1924.

The company recorded a revenue of Rs 220 crore, of which Rs 170 crore came in from products/medicines and the rest from services in FY22.

This year, they expect only a marginal increase in revenue to Rs 240 crore (Rs 190 crore from products and the rest from services) due to the sharp spike in input costs.

“Our 2030 plan envisages more than doubling the turnover to Rs 500 crore. We hope to drive this primarily by entering new categories of treatment like infertility, sports and lifestyle diseases, among others — and also launching new medical products, especially in the nutraceuticals,” Ashtavaidyan Dr Yadu Narayanan Mooss and Ashtavaidyan Dr Krishnan Mooss, who are the executive directors of the group, told PTI.

The key ingredients of the plan include new products and services, a renewed focus on research and development, expanding the network and a special focus on lifestyle diseases and entering the nutraceuticals segment, said the duo in their 30s. They are the fifth generation family members.

The group has already made a foray into infertility and maternal care, they said, adding “we have launched an institute of fertility and maternal care early this year as part of extending our knowledge base to new areas.

They are also planning to enter the area of sports medicine in a big way. “The R&D team is in the advanced stages of work in the area of sports medicine. Very soon, we will be in a position to make a few announcements in the area,” the group said.

“We are also planning the geographical expansion in the coming days. The group has a direct presence in Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad. We have identified a few more locations in the Northern and Western regions,” Krishnan said, adding the immediate focus markets will be Jaipur, Kolhapur and Pune in Maharashtra and the major cities of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

Stressing the importance of an integrated and holistic system of healthcare, Yadu said the younger generation is becoming more aware of the ayurveda system.

“We’re receiving youngsters, especially professionals in the fields of IT and management, seeking help in areas that are generally associated with lifestyle issues. Apart from diabetics, we’ve also noticed increasing incidence of hypertension, insomnia, and irritable bowel syndrome amongst the youngsters, he said, adding the Ashtavaidya system has efficient remedies for these ailments.

The focus of the group will be on the treatment and prescription-based medicines, they said and ruled out entering the wellness segment, saying their competence is in delivering quality treatment and medicines.

“We will focus on these areas with renewed vigour on research and development.”

Along with infertility and maternal care, they have also identified several other areas with good potential for using our knowledge base and expertise.

“Some of these areas are in various stages of research and it would be too early to make any comments,” Krishnan said, adding these are the areas that we hope will drive in more money for us.

Whether they will take the company public the brothers said they thinking about a public issue after the top line reached the target.

They further said that they may also tap the PE route to raise capital if the expansion plans get moving as planned.

The doctors, pointing to the difficulty in sourcing the medicinal plants, said to ensure the raw material supply the group is also entering into agreements with farmers in other states, especially Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.

They are also looking at entering into operations and management contracts with other ayurveda facilities.

They have already signed the 100-bedded Vrindhavan ayurveda hospital in Baddi in Himachal, which was shuttered during the pandemic. Under the O&M deal, they will get a royalty and a commission for supplying staff, who will be paid by the original promoters.

The group is also close to ink an agreement with the Saudi government to set up a 100-bedded ayurveda hospital in Riyadh.

It runs a NABH-accredited 100-bed facility at the headquarters, along with a 150-bed medical college in the same location. These will go up to 450 by 2030, they said.

From the manufacturing side, which began in 1941, it will increase the capacity of its three units at Thaikkattussery and Chuvannamannu in Thrissur and Pollachi in neighbouring Tamil Nadu.

The Ashtavaidya system is based on the Ashtangahridayam, a classic Sanskrit treatise on healthcare and text elucidates eight areas of Kaya (general medicine), bala (paediatrics including obstetrics), graham (psychological disorders), urdhvanga (diseases of the head (eyes, ears, nose, throat and teeth), shalya (surgery and treatment for external injuries), damshtra (toxicology (treatment for poisoning, snake and insect bites), jara (geriatrics and rejuvenation) and vrisha (aphrodisiacs and treatment for sterility).