The Silicon Review - Best Business Review Magazine 50 Most Trustworthy Companies 2019 | Page 93

this will lead to a high number of
newly approved therapies in this
space.
The high rate of consanguinity in the
Gulf region and the large family size,
lead inevitably to a relatively higher
prevalence and incidence of genetic
disease. Moreover, we decided to
focus early our efforts and resources
on this geography, based on the
universal healthcare coverage
provided by the GCC governments
to their nationals. We felt that these
facts combined with the existing gap
in access to treatments which was
reduced by the progress in treating
and managing these diseases,
would be the foundation of a strong
business opportunity.
There was also a significant lack of
awareness amongst multinational
companies, about the business
potential the Middle East region
presented. Although growing, the
MENA pharmaceutical market
represents only two percent of
global pharma sales. Understandably,
the region sat as a very low priority
for multinationals, particularly for
the typical small biotech and rare
disease companies. Their resources
are focused on the larger markets of
US, Europe and Japan. We took it on
us to educate these companies about
the prevalence of these diseases, the
early access opportunities that exist
for their drug in the region and how
Genpharm’s expertise and business
model can generate early revenue
for them without taking risks and
deploying their own resources.
Finally, like with every
entrepreneurial venture we were
driven by a larger purpose. We
wanted to create a unique and
differentiated business while making
a positive impact on the people we
touch. The letters and testimonials
we receive from families and
patients are the biggest satisfaction
we have, far more rewarding than
any financial incentives.
How successful was your
first project roll on? Share
the experience.
Any entrepreneur will tell you that
success is never guaranteed. It
takes hard work, sacrifices and luck.
We invested all of our savings in
Genpharm while knowing that the
road to profitability can be longer
than in the other industries. The
high personal stakes, the numerous
naysayers and doubters, the size of
the risk we took kept us awake most
nights for the first three years.
On the organizational side,
despite having a strong personal
reputation in the industry,
Genpharm was a new player. You
still need to build the corporate
identity, the trust with all the
stakeholders and attract the
right talent into the start-up,
while managing the operation.
Trust is difficult to build and
easy to lose. We got our first
important partnership in 2013
when Genzyme trusted us
with their innovative Multiple
Sclerosis (MS) portfolio. The
success of this partnership
helped us tremendously in
building our brand equity with
regulators, physicians, and
multinational companies.
Is your company a ‘leader
or a follower’? Do you
formulate your own core
values?
In a very short period of time,
we have established a leadership
position in the MENA region in
the rare disease space. Our brand
is well-recognized amongst
the many local and global
stakeholders. Our leadership though
is on the Market Access side since we
are not an R&D or a manufacturer.
We take great pride nevertheless in
being the first company to introduce
Gene therapy to the Middle East.
This means that we are at the
forefront of innovation as a service
provider and as a strategic partner.
If you have to list five
factors that have been/are
the biggest asset to your
organization, what would
they be and why?
•
Our passion and drive to
genuinely support patients and
“
We strive to
be the partner
of choice for
multinational
healthcare and
pharmaceutical
companies
expanding into
the Middle
East and North
Africa region.
”
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