The Dr. Simi empire is growing once again — this time with the launch of “Simisónico,” a live-session music series from Farmacias Similares that spotlights Mexican performers in a style much like NPR’s Tiny Desk concerts.
Moreover, the new series serves as the official lead-up to the much larger SimiFest 2025, the second annual version of a multiple-act concert that debuted last November at Parque Bicentenario in Mexico City.
The first installment of “Simisónico” on Aug. 7 featured Enjambre, the two-decades-old rock band with Zacatecas roots that reportedly was the first act to be confirmed for SimiFest 2025.
Filmed inside the Farmacias Similares corporate offices in Mexico City, the tiny concert — though not as crammed as at NPR’s offices — featured Enjambre playing songs such as “Juguete,” “Angustias” and “Impacto.”
The clips quickly picked up steam on TikTok and other platforms. A life-size Dr. Simi doll can be seen sitting motionless behind the company’s front desk alongside a real-life receptionist (who is actually working), while a costumed Dr. Simi grooves to the beat among the small audience.
“Simisónico is the warmup before SimiFest,” Víctor González Herrera, CEO of Farmacias Similares, noted as the series launched. “The best bands of the current Mexican scene will be visiting us at our headquarters.”
The project underscores González’s broader effort to link his pharmacy chain’s usually lab-coated mascot, Dr. Simi, to youth culture, music and social causes.
Last year’s inaugural SimiFest raised funds for the SíMiPlaneta initiative, which supports reforestation and environmental cleanup projects in 23 Mexican states. SíMiPlaneta translates to YesMyPlanet.
Los Simis poniendo el ambiente en el #Simifest 2024: pic.twitter.com/l3eaOHIcZL
— K (@TransportesK) November 23, 2024
Since then, Farmacias Similares has launched the Dr. Simi brand in the United States and a line of budget-friendly veterinary clinics in Mexico, featuring Doctora Lares as a new mascot. The clinics are in the process of opening 12 new locations in metropolitan Mexico City and México state.
Additionally, a new Dr. Simi flight simulator and store opened last month in the one-and-half-year-old Aztlán amusement park in Mexico City, and last year, a four-room Dr. Simi museum and café opened in the Cuauhtémoc borough of Mexico City.
This is in addition to the over 9,500 Farmacias Similares locations across all 31 Mexican states and Mexico City, according to Bloomberg and other sources.
As for the upcoming SimiFest 2025, it will be held on Saturday, Nov. 29 at Mexico City’s Hermanos Rodríguez Racetrack, expanding from one to two stages. Multiple media outlets say Enjambre is confirmed, although the group isn’t included on a concert poster that includes bands such as Empire of the Sun, Leon Bridges, Caloncho, Maribou State, Rhye, Roosevelt, Darius and others.
The charitable mission will continue in 2025, with proceeds from each ticket converted into an “environmental bomb” used for planting efforts, organizers said.
Tickets range from 1,647 pesos (US $88) for general admission to 4,270 pesos (US $228) for VIP.
As for “Simisónico,” organizers promise more sessions from “emerging and established Mexican talent” in the weeks ahead.
With reports from El Universal, Milenio and Chilango.com
