Deal buys 100% stake via its French subsidiary
Celltrion Headquarters (Photo provided by Celltrion)
Celltrion announced on May 12 that it has acquired Gifrer, a French healthcare company with a 114-year history.
The acquisition was conducted through Celltrion’s French subsidiary, which acquired a 100% stake. The acquisition price will remain undisclosed under an agreement between the two companies. Both companies plan to promptly complete the remaining administrative procedures and operational adjustments.
Celltrion plans to operate Gifrer as an independent subsidiary to maximize the synergy between the two companies’ products and sales, while fully leveraging Gifrer’s local brand recognition. All 70-plus employees currently working at Gifrer will have their employment secured.
Established in France in 1912, Gifrer is a healthcare company with a 114-year history and tradition. It has a sales network of over 9,000 pharmacies and a supply chain to about 800 hospitals across France. The company possesses a portfolio of around 140 products, including saline solutions, teeth whitening products, and infant and toddler products—which hold a high market share locally—as well as other OTC, Drugstore Medicines (DM), and health functional food products.
To effectively utilize the network of over 9,000 pharmacies secured through the Gifrer acquisition, Celltrion is also planning to expand its business scope by securing distribution rights for competitive third-party generic and OTC products. Accordingly, the strategy is to maximize performance growth by selecting generic and OTC product lines that have high local demand but low competition, creating synergy with Gifrer’s sales network. A number of products are currently under final review as candidates, and the introduction of distribution rights is expected to take place soon.
In addition, Celltrion is reviewing plans to sell various product lines from its group affiliates—including generics, OTC products, cosmetics, and health functional foods—in France by leveraging Gifrer’s pharmacy sales network.
Furthermore, Celltrion plans to actively review future mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of competitive local companies with high brand recognition, similar to Gifrer.
A Celltrion official stated, “Starting with the acquisition of Gifrer, we will continue to actively pursue M&A of competitive companies that can strengthen our direct sales capabilities in line with the specific healthcare policies of each country or region.”
Choi Mun-hee
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