U.S. Presidents Failed to Solve This, But I Can't Quit. | MedMe Health, Purya Sarmadi
In a Nutshell
Purya Sarmadi built MedMe Health through four pivots because he had deep conviction in the pharmacy market, learning that founders should persist with the right market while iterating to find the right wedge. His mother's heart valve surgery and lifelong reliance on pharmacists revealed that pharmacies are underutilized community healthcare hubs, and MedMe's software now enables clinical services like INR monitoring across 4,500+ locations. The most critical lesson is protecting co-founder relationships—blame and criticism can extinguish motivation, whereas mutual support through ups and downs is essential for long-term survival.
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Purya Sarmadi went through four different pivots with MedMe, but conviction for the market only grew throughout. The advice given is: if you have conviction around the market, don't give up on the market. Healthcare and vertical SaaS may appear unsexy from the outside, but the decision to build in healthcare was driven by personal experience—Sarmadi's mother had a heart valve failure when he was around 6 or 7 years old.
Every pivot provided more information about pharmacies, pharmacists, and their patients. This information helped narrow down which wedge was most important. The key lesson is: if you're a first-time founder, don't mistake being in the wrong wedge as being in the wrong market. You might be in the right market with conviction about that market, but simply on the wrong wedge.
Purya Sarmadi is the CEO and co-founder of MedMe Health. MedMe serves over 4,500 pharmacies across North America. The company powers operations, integrations, and automations to transform drug dispensaries into community healthcare hubs.
Sarmadi was born in Cologne, Germany. The family moved from Germany to Canada when he was around 6 or 7 years old. Not long after the move, his mother experienced heart valve failure, creating a complicated period for her and the family. Many surgeons were hesitant to operate due to the risk. They presented things in an optimistic yet realistic light.
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