Pharma • Forum

Pharmaceutical companies from across the world continue to see Spain as a top-tier investment destination thanks to affordable, high-quality manufacturing capabilities and favorable laws.

Marieta Jimenez GENERAL MANAGER SPAIN, MERCK

SINCE OUR FOUNDING 350 YEARS AGO, we have become truly global, with more than 52,000 employees in 66 countries working on breakthrough solutions and technologies. There are two traditions that have been the key of this growth and success: science is at the heart of everything we do, and the founding family that has shaped the company over 13 generations remains its majority owner. As a result, we have become a leading science and technology company, always overcoming challenges through effort and innovation. Since 1924, Merck Spain has grown to become fourth in the market in terms of production, investment in R&D, and turnover. Within the different areas we work in at Merck, such as healthcare, life sciences, and performance materials, we have strengthened our pipeline and reoriented our efforts to the research of treatments for pathologies with a high impact on patients’ quality of life. We collaborate with the global scientific community to solve the toughest problems in life science, helping scientists and engineers at every stage of their work. Our lab materials, technologies, and services help make research and pharmaceutical and biotech production simpler, faster, and safer. We also participate in everyday technologies, like liquid crystals or OLEDs in the display of smartphones, the effect pigments in the coating of cars, or the high-performance materials that make the microchips in electronic devices possible. People are continuously in contact with our products and solutions every day.

Jesús Govantes CEO, NORMON LABORATORIES

WE OPERATE IN SEVERAL MARKETS AND SELL A VARIETY OF PRODUCTS. The most important segment for us is prescription medicines in Spain; it covers more than 50% of our sales. Direct sales to clinics and hospitals also make up a significant amount. At 21%, we have the largest market share in Spain. Some 20% of the medicines that are administered in Spanish hospitals are ours. We represent more than 50% of the dental anesthetics market. Our OTC line is growing, but there is still more room to grow. Our international operations can be divided into two parts. The first is exporting products under our brand, which is usually to Latin America, North Africa, Australia, and Asia. The other, equally important part, is manufacturing for other companies. We manufacture for companies in Europe, South Africa, the US, and Canada. We are present in 90 countries. In some countries, our brand is distributed by distributors and in other cases, we manufacture for other companies. In 2016, the FDA approved our facilities, which was a significant step for the company. In 2020, our main goal is to start up all the investments that we have made because this will allow us to increase our capacity and enter new markets. In 2018, we grew by 10%, and we plan to grow between 10% and 15% in 2019. We can achieve that, especially if we can continue to grow our international presence. Growth will lead to competitiveness, bigger workforce, and a stronger impact on the community.

Staffan Schüberg CEO, ESTEVE

SINCE 1929, our focus has been to provide solutions for unmet medical needs. Today, we are a privately-owned international company with headquarters in Barcelona. Our business model covers the entire pharmaceutical value chain, offering a wide and innovative portfolio. The ability to generate alliances has been one of the engines of Esteve’s growth and expansion, and today, the group incorporates different types of businesses within the health area. This includes Esteve Pharmaceuticals; ISDIN, a skincare alliance between ESTEVE and the Puig Group; and Esteve Teijin Healthcare (ETH) in the field of home respiratory therapy with Japanese group Teijin Pharma. Our current team consists of more than 2,300 people, with a turnover close to EUR800 million, of which 73% comes from international markets. Most of Esteve’s net sales currently come from international markets. These sales are generated by our business as a contract manufacturing organization and our generics subsidiary in the US. Our challenge in the next few years is to also internationalize in the pharmaceutical area with products of high added value and specialty medicinal products. To do this, we are actively looking for a new home for our generics business division that will allow us to reinvest and develop our own value-added product portfolio. We must make the most of the advantages of being an internationalized CMO business. Moving forward, we aim to guarantee innovation and develop and accelerate the detection of inorganic growth opportunities, allowing us to make a leap forward and bring us closer to our vision.

Ignasi Biosca CEO, REIG JOFRE

THE COMPANY WAS FOUNDED IN 1929. Even though we are 90 years old, I see us as a fast-moving, dynamic, and flexible company. Primarily, we work in Spain, but also in France, Sweden, the UK, Belgium, and Portugal. We have 1,100 employees, the majority of which are women. We expect to end 2019 with a EUR200 million turnover. Historically, we have focused on three product areas: dermatological products such as creams and ointments, genealogical products, and joint health and pain. Instead of manufacturing diverse pharmaceutical products such as tablets, syrups, or capsules, we concentrated on specific technologies. One is injectable products that directly enter the bloodstream, usually within a hospital environment. We are focused on freeze drying, or lyophilization technology, which uses physical methods to dry a pharmaceutical product so that it can be stored at room temperature and turned into powder without heating. This way, the product retains its properties and remains usable for up to five years. Our technology division is particularly international because we work with distributors worldwide in over 70 countries with over 130 partners. The other half of our business, the specialty products, prescription products, and consumer healthcare, is more of a B2C business. As of today, we have teams in Spain, France, Sweden, Belgium, Portugal, the UK, and Singapore, where we have a small operation with a local partner to enter Southeast Asian markets. Today, around 40% of our business is in Spain and the rest international.

Joan Carles Font FOUNDER & GENERAL DIRECTOR, MESOESTETIC PHARMA GROUP

THE COMPANY WAS BORN IN 1984 out of the need to respond to the emergence of a new medical specialty in the world of medicine. It was a specialty that meant one did not need to be sick to go to the doctor. At that time, the recognized medical specialties were dermatology, neurology, nutrition, dietetics, and aesthetic medicine, where plastic surgery was restorative rather than aesthetically-minded. Since its inception, mesoestetic has been committed to the development and marketing of top-quality products with scientifically proven results. We now have more than 300 products. Our advances are linked to our constant effort made in research and our collaboration with hospitals, universities, and recognized specialists to investigate new treatments. We export the 85% of our production to 92 countries in the world. We are the first company authorized in Spain to manufacture implant materials and medical devices. We are also the only company in Spain that has its own manufacturing plant and the most extensive rage of intradermal solutions for a personalized treatment, a family of 13 products with CE marking in the form of a class-III injectable medical device. In sanitary regulation, it is qualified at the maximum level of requirement of the Ministry of Health. And we are one of only eight companies in the world that manufactures these products internally. The rest are manufactured under licenses with third-party manufacturing. We also manufacture medicines, anesthetics, dermatological creams, and all product lines that fall within the range of cosmetics.

Xavier Martí MANAGING DIRECTOR SPAIN & PORTUGAL, LUNDBECK

LUNDBECK STARTED ITS BUSINESS in the pharmaceutical sector in 1915. In the 1950s, it reduced its focus to psychiatry, neurology, and central nervous system. In 1994, we partnered with Abelló and entered Spain with Deanxit, a product for the central nervous system. While the expansion of Lundbeck was focused on Nordic countries, Si Lars Bang, vice-president of production and infrastructure, came to Spain and launched antipsychotics and antidepressants. This was in line with the company’s European and global expansion plans. Lundbeck Spain has spearheaded the launch of the company’s innovative products in the last 10 years. Firstly, we expanded across Europe and then reached agreements with companies in the US. We have a number of successful projects in the field of depression. Some 25 years ago, we launched Citalopram in Spain as the first antidepressant in the country. Our expertise in the central nervous system has helped us to build key relationships with experts in the field of depression research. We are currently in the third generation of antidepressants with Vortioxetine. Under the new Lundbeck strategy, we are expanding to other areas of the central nervous system such as migraine and other neurological syndromes. Our greatest opportunity is to continue working with patient associations, administration, and patients in parallel with all healthcare professionals to improve awareness and talk openly about mental illnesses. We can fulfill our mission to give all those who suffer from mental illness the opportunity to live their best lives.