Nicholas Piramal''s new business strategy
04 Mar 2002
Mumbai: Following an internal restructuring, Nicholas Piramal India Ltd, one of India’s leading pharmaceutical company, has formulated a new business strategy.
It has decided to leverage on brand strength, enhance investment in research and development, tap potentials of the Clinical Research Organisation and focus more on diagnostics and pathlabs. The company has also kick-started the transformation process in its eight different divisions by introducing various business strategies.
In a newsletter, NIL chairman Ajay Piramal said his company has rationalised the product and business mix to release sub-optimally utilised resources. "This process has resulted in dropping unprofitable brands, divesting non-core brands, introducing only products where the company would be in the first five in the respective market and divesting unprofitable business tie-ups with multinational companies like Stryker and the US Surgical and Scholl Pharma."
He said the focus will now be on R&D in four high potential areas — cardiovascular, diabetes, anti-fungal and cancer. NPIL officials say the company has also decided to invest 4 per cent of its turnover in R&D. "The underlying philosophy of all the new products will be to introduce only those brands that will be in the top five group and earn the company a huge critical mass in the first three years itself — that is a sale of Rs 5 to Rs 8 crore in the targeted period. A distinct growth strategy has been worked out for new blockbuster brands like Gratim and XARB, and other products like Gres and Zetalo, which were among the first to perform well in the market."
The new strategy in the cardiovascular segment will also include the company phasing out some of its small-turnover, low-potential brands in this segment. The drugs that may face the axe include Carvetrend, Oricar, Cardules, Bezalip and Acinopril.
Similarly, the officials say, the company has already started the transformation of various divisions like multi-speciality and extra care, RP division, vitamin and fine chemicals, diagnostics, biotech, pathlabs, Rickitt Pirimal and Boots Piramal. "We are looking for a strategic joint-venture partner in its biotech division, while in the pathlabs division we have adopted a ‘growth through acquisition’ strategy."
Close on the heels of acquiring ICI India’s pharma business in January this year, the company has entered into a strategic tie-up with the Hyderabad-based Gland Pharma. The tie-up is mainly for launching a new cardiovascular drug, Enoxaparim. Under the tie-up arrangement, Gland Pharma will manufacture the new drug, while Nicholas Piramal will undertake the marketing of the drug.
It has decided to leverage on brand strength, enhance investment in research and development, tap potentials of the Clinical Research Organisation and focus more on diagnostics and pathlabs. The company has also kick-started the transformation process in its eight different divisions by introducing various business strategies.In a newsletter, NIL chairman Ajay Piramal said his company has rationalised the product and business mix to release sub-optimally utilised resources. "This process has resulted in dropping unprofitable brands, divesting non-core brands, introducing only products where the company would be in the first five in the respective market and divesting unprofitable business tie-ups with multinational companies like Stryker and the US Surgical and Scholl Pharma."
He said the focus will now be on R&D in four high potential areas — cardiovascular, diabetes, anti-fungal and cancer. NPIL officials say the company has also decided to invest 4 per cent of its turnover in R&D. "The underlying philosophy of all the new products will be to introduce only those brands that will be in the top five group and earn the company a huge critical mass in the first three years itself — that is a sale of Rs 5 to Rs 8 crore in the targeted period. A distinct growth strategy has been worked out for new blockbuster brands like Gratim and XARB, and other products like Gres and Zetalo, which were among the first to perform well in the market."The new strategy in the cardiovascular segment will also include the company phasing out some of its small-turnover, low-potential brands in this segment. The drugs that may face the axe include Carvetrend, Oricar, Cardules, Bezalip and Acinopril.
Similarly, the officials say, the company has already started the transformation of various divisions like multi-speciality and extra care, RP division, vitamin and fine chemicals, diagnostics, biotech, pathlabs, Rickitt Pirimal and Boots Piramal. "We are looking for a strategic joint-venture partner in its biotech division, while in the pathlabs division we have adopted a ‘growth through acquisition’ strategy."
Close on the heels of acquiring ICI India’s pharma business in January this year, the company has entered into a strategic tie-up with the Hyderabad-based Gland Pharma. The tie-up is mainly for launching a new cardiovascular drug, Enoxaparim. Under the tie-up arrangement, Gland Pharma will manufacture the new drug, while Nicholas Piramal will undertake the marketing of the drug.