Firm ups focus on consumer items

Biopharm Chemicals, a leading Thai pharmaceutical manufacturer, plans to increase the proportion of consumer products in its portfolio over the next three to five years.

The goal of the restructuring is to be well prepared for the opportunities and challenges presented by the Asean Economic Community (AEC), which will be fully implemented in 2015 and result in tougher competition in the domestic and regional markets, especially from international pharmaceutical brands.

The company will also sign a contract with a US-based global top-five pharmaceutical-maker by the end of this month for an original-equipment manufacturing (OEM) agreement for the production and supply of its medical products within Asean.

Biopharm is also negotiating with potential pharmaceutical partners, in India, China, Spain and Germany for OEM agreements and the exchange of medical products, which will help the company to enlarge its pharmaceutical portfolio and strengthen competitiveness in the AEC era.

Marketing director Sakesuk Kasemsuwan yesterday said that under the strategy, Biopharm would focus on a well-balanced business portfolio divided into two core product categories - pharmaceuticals and consumer products.

"We want to raise the ratio of consumer and food supplements from the current 10 per cent each to 20 and 25 per cent respectively in the next two to three years," he said.

Sakesuk said pharmaceutical products now contributed about 90 per cent of Biopharm's sales, with hospital sales accounting for two-thirds and the remainder coming from over-the-counter sales in drug stores.

He said the company would invest Bt100 million to adjust the lay-out and some facilities at its pharmaceutical factory in Bangpu Industrial Estate in Samut Prakan in order to meet the requirements proposed by potential overseas vendors for OEM agreements.

He added that the Bangpu fac-tory had won certification under the Pharmaceutical Inspection Cooperation Scheme, which would allow the company to better focus on exports and OEM work for international drug firms.

"Under the OEM agreement to be signed with the US pharmaceutical giant, we will produce about 20 different antibiotic and cardiovascular products for them, to be firstly distributed in the domestic market. Thailand will be a production hub for them to penetrate the Asean market in the near future," the executive said.

Biopharm will not only be awarded a Bt400-million order under the OEM agreement in the next five years, but will also enjoy technology and know-how transfer from the US medical firm, he said.

"We plan to export more pharmaceutical products to Asean, especially to the Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia, via partnership with foreign pharmaceutical manufacturers," said Sakesuk, adding that the company last year generated Bt150 million from overseas sales of its pharmaceutical products.

"We want to double our exports to about Bt300 million by 2015," he said. The company also aims to double its domestic sales to about Bt2 billion in the same period.

Meanwhile, Biopharm yesterday announced the launch of the imported Restiv Men hair-treatment brand from Spain, to be sold under its consumer-product portfolio via the over-the-counter drug-store channel.

The brand will, however, also be distributed at modern retail outlets in the future.

Restiv Men products are expected to generate Bt70 million in sales over the first 12 months, Sakesuk said.