Foreign Products Support Local Growth

Q: CDM Labs is looking to expand its participation into different markets. What new opportunities is the company targeting?

A: The dermatology field has three different branches: clinical dermatology, which focuses on skin disease treatment, all other dermocosmetic fields serve as coadjutants to the aforesaid conditions, and surgical procedures covering both the aesthetic and dermatologyrelated fields. CDM Labs is merely involved in the clinical area of dermatology, but the company is looking to expand its scope into surgical and aesthetic-related procedures as it is the fastest growing segment in dermatology. Last year, the pharmaceutical market as a whole grew by 6 percent. Contrarily, the dermatology market, which involves desmocosmetic, and skin disease medicines fell short at 3 percent, which is barely enough to cover yearly inflation. In the past, dermatology specialists were against the aesthetic and corrective industry but the tide has changed as proven by growth percentages.

Through mergers and acquisitions companies have inorganically grown in this segment, concentrating their efforts somewhere else. Big pharma companies with major market presence have some participation in dermatology while those who do not are still holding back believing it is responsible only for minor market volumes. In the pharmaceutical industry, dermatology accounts for 6 percent of the market share. This represents considerable opportunities for CDM Labs as we are solely focused on this. Bringing new and innovative medical solutions to the market is not an easy task as COFEPRIS’ regulations continue to tighten. As a result, we are bringing foreign medications to the market, especially from countries with high standards, and certification requirements such as the US, Canada, France, Germany and Italy. Currently, dermocosmetic products do not require sanitary registration, which allowed us to boost our portfolio. However, we foresee that Julio Sánchez y Tepoz, the newly appointed Commissioner of COFEPRIS, will change this.

Q: What are the current market trends in the dermatology care arena?

A: Natural products are increasingly demanded around the world, taking the form of phytopharmaceuticals. This type of pharmaceutical has been clinically proven and is backed up by most physicians. As such, it has specific therapeutic effects on conditions like rosacea and atopic dermatitis (AD). The latter has huge market opportunities as children contract the disease at high frequency. But there are some who remain skeptical about the benefits of phytopharmaceuticals and it is crucial the rest of the population understand their importance. On a positive note their success in European markets will most certainly permeate into Mexico and Latin America.

Q: Which socioeconomic spheres is CDM Labs targeting the most?

A: CDM Labs covers most market segments but a large volume of our products are destined to the C+, upper middle socioeconomic class. Our luxury portfolio services the A/B and C+ social spheres. Nonetheless, some of our products fit different demographics with different consumption capabilities. We have evaluated the possibility of commercializing generic products that could further expand our market reach, however, nothing has materialized. What is certain is that lowering prices is essential as all types of societies need solar protection. A way to accomplish this is by cheapening packaging costs mainly by using environmentally friendly materials.

Q: What products commercialized by CDM Labs see the most success?

A: We commercialize a large number of products but we are investing most of our capital in three categories of products, including capillary care and hair products, pigmentation skincare products and skin blockers, which is a very congested market with multiple players. There are high margins for opportunity in Mexico putting a hold on our export endeavors. There is a lot of room to improve domestically and our efforts will be channeled into meeting our expectations. CDM Labs is looking to help Mexican society by commercializing state-of-the-art and innovative solutions in-house. There is a long way to go in terms of product coverage.