Generics Players Dominating New OTC Launches In Germany
Executive Summary
An analysis by Sempora Consulting of the German OTC market in 2018 shows that generic products dominate new OTC product launches.
Generic medicines are dominating new OTC product launches in Germany, according to an analysis by Sempora Consulting.
Based on German market data from Insight Health, Sempora looked at how well new OTC products – excluding line extensions – launched between 2015 and 2018 performed in the financial year ended December 2018.
ratiopharm Group’s dexpanthenol-based nasal spray Nasenduo was by far the most successful new OTC brand in the year, with total sales reaching €26.9m ($30.1m).
Hexal AG’s mometason-based MometaHexal came in second with a turnover of €14.2m in the twelve months, triple that of Ratiopharm’s Hyaluron eye drops, sales of which reached €3.9m last year.
Sempora said it was “not surprising” that generics manufacturers dominated the top ten launches, with a quarter of total top-10 sales coming from generic products, because “umbrella brands” like Ratiopharm or Hexal allowed new products to be quickly placed on the market.
Looking at the top-10 manufacturers by new product turnover in 2018, Ratiopharm again dominated the line-up, according to Sempora’s analysis.
Ratiopharm’s six new products launched within the time frame of Sempora’s analysis generated total sales of €40m in 2018.
Proprietary manufacturers also made it onto the list, with two new GlaxoSmithKline PLC branded products bringing in €20.8m for the company in 2018, and Stada Arzneimittel AG generating €6.5m from two new brands during the year.
Reflecting on what made launches successful, Sempora’s managing partner Thomas Golly said that OTC firms needed to focus on “consumer need,” with launches supported by clear “consumer-relevant” positioning and marketing.
For “lasting success,” Golly also insisted that consumer healthcare companies had to “inspire” pharmacists and pharmacy assistants to engage with their new brands. This was a lesson many manufacturers had failed to learn, he added.