While Indian medtech exporters have faced a host of global headwinds over the past year, including the Red Sea crisis, US tariffs, increasing competition from Chinese rivals, and the war in West Asia, the country’s largest listed medical equipment exporter has remained resilient. Poly Medicure expects to more than double its growth rate this year on the back of recent acquisitions and increased focus on high-tech equipment.
The company’s consolidated revenue grew 12.3% year-on-year to ₹1,875.3 crore in FY26, with a large portion of this growth coming from two strategic acquisitions made in September 2025: those of Italian orthopaedic device maker Citieff and Dutch medical devices company PendraCare Group, which specialises in cardiology catheters.
Poly Medicure expects these acquisitions, and its concerted effort to move up the value chain in medical equipment, to bolster growth in FY27. “From where we were last year, around 12%, we will now grow by around 25% (year-on-year) because of the full-year impact of these acquisitions, as well as faster growth in India and our international businesses. All of this combined will give us a faster growth runway,” Himanshu Baid, managing director of Poly Medicure, told Mint in an interview.
Up the food chain
The recent acquisitions are part of Poly Medicure’s strategy to move up the technology value chain not just to boost growth, but also hedge against macroeconomic risks.
“We are moving up the value curve… traditionally we have been a consumables manufacturer,” Baid said. The company has been expanding in higher-value sectors such as cardiology, orthopaedics, oncology and renal care, which account for at least half the patient pool in hospitals now, he added.
“For earlier products, our price range was ₹19-20 per product. Now we are selling products that cost ₹10,000-50,000 or more,” said Baid. “As we pitch ourselves in a higher product segment, I think we are able to replace multinational products, because there is huge room available in India and also globally. We are cheaper, we are more agile and flexible,” he added.
A key reason for this strategy is to help the company hold its own against Chinese consumables competitors in Europe, its second-largest market, which accounts for half of its revenues. Chinese companies undercut prices aggressively in Europe, and in India as well.
While Polymed is seeking policy interventions in India, it has turned to high-tech and high-quality equipment in Europe. “We are trying to innovate there, to create stickiness for the products. Dumping is there, especially in low-technology products. But when you move from low to medium technology, people are looking at performance, quality, all those parameters, apart from price,” said Baid.
The company’s focus on quality and innovation also reflects in its consumables, which are currently its mainstay. “Even in low tech, we are at the higher end of the spectrum, which is closer to medium technology,” said Baid. For instance, rather than syringes, gloves or gowns, the company has focused on making products such as IV cannulas and oxygen masks.
With the proposed India-US trade deal expected to ease tariffs to 18%, Polymed is hoping to prioritise US exports in FY27. Currently, the US market accounts for a small share of overall sales ($6-7 million), but the goal is to grow that figure to $25 million by FY30, Baid said.
In India, which accounts for 31% of sales, the expansion of corporate chains and better insurance penetration are driving the company’s growth.
West Asia war impact
While the company has overcome several challenges, the runway isn’t entirely smooth. The ongoing West Asia conflict, which has blocked the critical Strait of Hormuz, has caused a massive spike in polymer prices, key raw materials for medical consumables.
“We have seen a 20% increase in input costs across the board, and to mitigate this we have undertaken a price increase of 3-5% from customers,” said Baid. With the rupee also depreciating, the company has seen an overall price increase of 7-10% from exports, which has helped mitigate the risk to an extent, he added.
However, the company expects the war’s impact to continue in the second quarter of the year, with uncertainty over a potential peace deal and persistently high crude oil prices. Baid said the company expects a 200-300 basis points hit to gross margin for the full year.