Derek Borkowski, a pharmacist turned tech entrepreneur, created Pyrls, a digital platform revolutionizing how healthcare professionals access and utilize drug information.
Born and raised in Winona, Minnesota, Derek Borkowski witnessed firsthand the impact of community businesses on local life through his mother’s work in a pharmacy and his family’s towing and salvage business. This early exposure fostered a deep appreciation for both service and entrepreneurship.
Driven by a passion for community pharmacy and a desire to improve patient care, Derek pursued a degree in pharmacy at the University of Minnesota. An internship at MyMeds, a venture-backed digital health startup, opened his eyes to the world of technology and startups. This experience, along with the encouragement of MyMeds’ CEO and product manager, ignited his interest in coding and led to his starting his own business.
A Pharmacist’s Vision: Building a Better Drug Information Platform
While still in pharmacy school, Derek began developing the initial version of Pyrls, a side project that would eventually transform into a full-fledged business. Recognizing the limitations of existing drug reference tools, he set out to create a more user-friendly and efficient solution.
Pyrls differentiates itself by prioritizing the clinician’s needs. Instead of simply presenting vast amounts of information, Pyrls curates drug and therapy content around common clinical workflows, such as patient counseling, drug selection, and drug interactions. The platform’s intuitive interface, curated content, advanced tagging, and research capabilities make it easy for healthcare professionals to quickly find and interpret the information they need for optimal patient care.
Gaining Traction and Scaling the Business
Pyrls has quickly gained traction within the healthcare community among pharmacists, physicians, nurse practitioners and students. The company boasts over 10,000 paying subscribers and 50,000 free users who receive a subset of features. Pyrls success stems from its user-centric approach, prioritizing clinicians’ needs and delivering a mobile-first experience that resonates with a new generation of healthcare professionals. This makes Pyrls the go-to drug knowledge and decision-support center for many.
Strong clinician use of Pyrls as a drug information platform has attracted the attention of major healthcare organizations. Pyrls began servicing its first Fortune 10 healthcare company client and is currently in discussions with a Fortune 50 pharmacy retailer.
These organizations recognize Pyrls’ potential to help them attract and retain clinicians, improve pharmaceutical decision-making, enhance clinician workflows, and improve patient outcomes.
The Power of Mentorship: Navigating Growth with MESA
Derek’s earliest mentorship grew from his relationship with MyMeds. Pyrls then became the third Minnesota-based early-stage startup to join the Y Combinator accelerator out of Silicon Valley. Coming out of Covid, he sought to grow his tech connections in Minnesota and was introduced to MESA by Paul Taylor. Derek took the next step and was accepted into the MESA Mentorship Program in the fall of 2023.
As a solo, product-focused founder, Derek wanted to continue his growth as a CEO and accelerate growth of his company. With bigger B2B opportunities on the horizon, MESA Mentors John Moroney and Ryan Smith have been essential in supporting Derek with strategic and tactical insights that help the company capitalize on larger opportunities, evolve and grow sales practices, and replicate successes.
“MESA has been invaluable in helping me navigate the challenges of scaling a business,” says Borkowski. “My mentors, John Moroney and Ryan Smith, have provided invaluable insights on strategy, sales, and negotiation, helping me make the most of these exciting opportunities.”
The Future of Pyrls: A Platform for Healthcare Professionals
Derek envisions Pyrls as the central hub for all medication-related information for healthcare professionals. By building the platform to allow clinicians and healthcare organizations to customize their experience, Pyrls aims to be the default software clinical teams use to manage all the information resources they need.
John Moroney, MESA lead mentor for Pyrls, shared, “Derek is building a terrific business that has the potential to be THE healthcare information platform for clinicians. It is a joy to meet with him, as he is humble, curious and constantly seeking insights into how he and his firm can take the next big step in growth.”
With a growing user base, efficient cash management, revenue that has doubled in the past year, and ongoing mentorship, Pyrls is well-positioned to continue its rapid growth and revolutionize how healthcare professionals access and utilize drug information.
