Well-being in pharma with Safwan Nached

Episode overview

Safwan Nached joins Pharma Republic to discuss a 35-year journey from medical representative to entrepreneur. The conversation moves from early pharma career lessons to hiring, founder resilience, well-being in pharma, preventive health, and the risks of using supplements without professional guidance.

Why it matters

Well-being and nutraceuticals are reshaping how pharma teams talk about value. Commercial operations must adapt when categories evolve, because new product stories, HCP conversations, and team priorities need operating systems that can change with the market.

From medical rep to entrepreneur

The early days: Dr. Safwan began his career 35 years ago as a medical representative in the UAE. He remembers rushing from Abu Dhabi to Dubai right after his driving test to attend his first interview with a multinational company, and landing the job. 03:31Opens in a new window

Taking the leap: A lifelong ambition to become a business owner pushed him to leave a comfortable position in late 1999. His family was skeptical, but a close friend encouraged him to start his own business and take responsibility for the path he wanted. 12:04Opens in a new window

The reality of entrepreneurship: Building the company was not glamorous. Dr. Safwan recalls moments when he had only 5 or 10 dirhams in his pocket, working from a bare warehouse without loans or partners. His message for the current generation is direct: sustainable success usually comes through struggle, sleepless nights, and patient work. 13:32Opens in a new window

Hiring and building a team

Attitude over aptitude: When hiring, Dr. Safwan gives heavy weight to personality, social awareness, and respectfulness. In his view, sales skills can be taught, but a positive spirit and a real desire to grow are much harder to manufacture. 05:04Opens in a new window

Investing in people: He sees employees as future partners, not only as people who generate revenue. His stated goal is to help employees grow enough to start their own businesses. For him, the real capital of a company is its people. 20:00Opens in a new window

The shift to wellness and preventive health

Changing lifestyles: Dr. Safwan describes how modern life has shifted over the last 20 years. Pollution, device radiation, poorer soil quality, highly processed food, stress, heart disease, diabetes, and autoimmune disorders all shape a larger conversation about well-being. 30:32Opens in a new window

Focusing on prevention: His own health experiences and the wider market shift pushed the company toward holistic health and preventive medicine. The aim is to look at root causes, not only symptoms, and to ask why conditions like obesity happen in the first place. 32:40Opens in a new window

Responsible supplement use: Dr. Safwan warns against buying vitamins and supplements because of advertisements, discounts, or attractive packaging. He emphasizes source quality, additives, the reason for taking a supplement, and the need to consult healthcare professionals instead of self-prescribing. 44:04Opens in a new window