Q&A: Dr. Reddy’s Labs targets growth following realignment
Marc Kikuchi, CEO of North America generics at Dr. Reddy’s Labs, leads the company’s Princeton, N.J.-based North American business and serves as a member of its board. He talked with Drug Store News to discuss the state of the industry and Dr. Reddy’s future plans.
Drug Store News: How does Dr. Reddy’s plan to grow its business in the United States?
Marc Kikuchi: As an outcome of a strategic realignment exercise, we have committed ourselves to six chosen spaces that are expected to drive growth for the company over the next five years. U.S. generics is one of those six growth areas for the company going forward. In the domestic market, we aim to significantly increase our portfolio offerings with a number of launches planned for the next fiscal year. These launches span various dosage forms, and many of them are likely to be complex, limited competition opportunities.
This includes growth in the oncology space, with the introduction of several injectable products. The expansion in our portfolio offering, coupled with our robust supply chain and our strong cost position, will help us drive growth for the generics business in the domestic market. We also look forward to offering significant value for the U.S. healthcare system and patients by providing affordable generic options for many branded drugs.
DSN: How does Dr. Reddy’s plan on accomplishing that?
MK: Our team has identified several areas that will be essential for driving our growth in the U.S. market, including specialty generics, oncology injectables, biosimilars, and store brand OTCs to name a few. The execution in each of these areas, along with focus on enhancing our customer service, and improvements to our operational efficiencies, cost controls and internal processes will help deliver on our growth aspirations. Additionally, we will continue to make strategic investments for long-term, sustainable growth while exploring selective business integration and opportunities to augment growth.
DSN: What is unique about Dr. Reddy’s approach to its growth strategy?
MK: At a time when many industry leaders are moving away from generics, Dr. Reddy’s has committed itself to focusing on growth in the domestic generics segment. In order to support this segment, we are significantly investing in our infrastructure for active ingredients and finished dosages, manufacturing and research, and development to service this business effectively. As mentioned earlier, our enhanced portfolio offering with supply reliability and competitive costs will be the key components to drive this growth as we strive to collaborate with our customers.
DSN: What type of factors do you see as long-term growth opportunities for Dr. Reddy’s in the United States?
MK: Our goal is to be among the leading generic providers and manufacturers in the United States. We strongly believe that the combination of a strong portfolio pipeline, robust supply chain and a competitive cost position will be essential to achieving this vision. In addition, we are looking to significantly invest in go-to-market models required to commercialize specialty generics products in the areas of urology, multiple sclerosis, oncology, gynecology and diabetology.
Marc Kikuchi is the CEO of North America generics at Dr. Reddy’s Labs, and serves as a member of its board.
Drug Store News: How does Dr. Reddy’s plan to grow its business in the United States?
Marc Kikuchi: As an outcome of a strategic realignment exercise, we have committed ourselves to six chosen spaces that are expected to drive growth for the company over the next five years. U.S. generics is one of those six growth areas for the company going forward. In the domestic market, we aim to significantly increase our portfolio offerings with a number of launches planned for the next fiscal year. These launches span various dosage forms, and many of them are likely to be complex, limited competition opportunities.
This includes growth in the oncology space, with the introduction of several injectable products. The expansion in our portfolio offering, coupled with our robust supply chain and our strong cost position, will help us drive growth for the generics business in the domestic market. We also look forward to offering significant value for the U.S. healthcare system and patients by providing affordable generic options for many branded drugs.
DSN: How does Dr. Reddy’s plan on accomplishing that?
MK: Our team has identified several areas that will be essential for driving our growth in the U.S. market, including specialty generics, oncology injectables, biosimilars, and store brand OTCs to name a few. The execution in each of these areas, along with focus on enhancing our customer service, and improvements to our operational efficiencies, cost controls and internal processes will help deliver on our growth aspirations. Additionally, we will continue to make strategic investments for long-term, sustainable growth while exploring selective business integration and opportunities to augment growth.
DSN: What is unique about Dr. Reddy’s approach to its growth strategy?
MK: At a time when many industry leaders are moving away from generics, Dr. Reddy’s has committed itself to focusing on growth in the domestic generics segment. In order to support this segment, we are significantly investing in our infrastructure for active ingredients and finished dosages, manufacturing and research, and development to service this business effectively. As mentioned earlier, our enhanced portfolio offering with supply reliability and competitive costs will be the key components to drive this growth as we strive to collaborate with our customers.
DSN: What type of factors do you see as long-term growth opportunities for Dr. Reddy’s in the United States?
MK: Our goal is to be among the leading generic providers and manufacturers in the United States. We strongly believe that the combination of a strong portfolio pipeline, robust supply chain and a competitive cost position will be essential to achieving this vision. In addition, we are looking to significantly invest in go-to-market models required to commercialize specialty generics products in the areas of urology, multiple sclerosis, oncology, gynecology and diabetology.
Marc Kikuchi is the CEO of North America generics at Dr. Reddy’s Labs, and serves as a member of its board.