Case Studies

A chemical company with global operations was being evaluated for acquisition by a Europe-based financial firm. They hired a multi-national consulting firm for assessing the global operations of the company, listing the assets, and performing SWOT analysis of the complete product range of the company in all countries. SWOT analysis also covered global R&D and manufacturing operations of the company. AcuBiz associate was the lead analyst and industry expert of this study, who worked with teams of the consulting company in USA, Europe, and various emerging markets.

The study was challenging due to tight deadlines and the huge range of products and product categories to be considered. In addition to assessing each product category of the target company, competitive intelligence was developed based on various determinants including the market shares of each product in each application segment and pipeline analysis of competitors.
The study was completed to the satisfaction of all the parties involved. The findings led to the acquisition of the target company for over $700 million.

Context

The client was a diagnostics company based in Southeast Asia involved in R&D, manufacturing, and marketing of PCR diagnostics kits. The company has been marketing only the products developed and manufactured in-house based on their proprietary technology platform. The company took a strategic decision to add new products to its product portfolio and wanted assistance of AcuBiz in product identification, negotiation, and shortlisting to 2-3 most suitable products.

Approach and Result

• A team of two consultants with over 15 years of experience took up the project
• The team studied the company to understand its strengths and proposed most suitable product categories that the firm can focus on
• The team also assessed the market gaps and competition levels in various disease areas and identified most suitable disease areas for the company
• A list of global companies with suitable products, ready for market, was prepared. Various business options including distribution, OEM, and product licensing were taken into consideration during this phase
• The prospective companies were contacted for product profiles for due diligence and short listing
• The team shared the list of shortlisted companies with the client
• Based on the feedback from the client, the team initiated negotiations with each of the selected companies
• Quotations and licensing options with respect to each product were assessed in detail to further shortlist the options
• Competitive intelligence and market potential assessment for each of the selected products were carried out for narrowing down the list further
• Status updates were shared with client and feedback was collected frequently at this stage for further shortlisting

Result

AcuBiz partnered with the client by offering expertise of the team and the manpower to complete various tasks associated with the project. This goal-oriented approach helped the client in saving the time and investments associated with new recruitments and training. The project resulted in the licensing of a two real time PCR products by the client

• To understand the acceptance levels of biosimilars among physicians in India
• To develop a reference document, which assesses the risks and benefits associated with biosimilars
• The report format will be suitable for circulation by the marketing team as a business development aid for spreading awareness about the biosimilars among infertility specialists

Approach

• A consultant who had been studying the global biosimilar market took charge of the project
• Secondary and primary research were conducted with a special focus on India. Response of biosimilar companies, innovator companies, and end-users (mainly physicians) and patients) were collected
• The report was designed highlighting the key findings with the help of images, charts and figures so that important data can be accessed easily by busy medical professionals

Result

The report was well appreciated by the marketing team of the client. The business development team appreciated the feedback collected from physicians and patient groups, which offered insights on possible business strategies that the client can adopt on the face of threat from biosimilar competitors

Context

A top oil palm company in Southeast Asia was planning to invest in downstream business. The company wanted to conduct due diligence of an oleochemical company for acquisition.

Approach

• A consultant who had been studying the global oleochemical markets took charge of the project
• The company was assessed from the following angles:
  1. The market share of the company globally, in each of its product segments
  2. The global client base of the company
  3. Facilities of the company for understanding its competitive edge in terms of technology, facilities, manpower, and logistics advantages
  4. Competitive intelligence identifying 4 similar companies and comparing the risks and benefits of the target company with respect to its competitors
  5. SWOT analysis of both the client and the targeted oleochemical company

 Result

The due diligence report was presented to the client along with strategic recommendations. Based on the findings, the company decided that the targeted oleochemical company was not the best strategic fit for them.

Context

A sludge treatment company wanted to study market opportunities in the APAC region and develop strategic market entry strategies

Approach

• Four APAC countries – Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and South Korea- were selected for the study
• Detailed secondary research was conducted for identifying the current sludge treatment practices and market leaders in these markets
• A contact list was prepared and shared with the client for primary research covering regulatory agencies, oil & gas companies (end users), and other sludge treatment companies (competitors)
• Primary research was conducted based on a detailed discussion guideline prepared covering all the necessary information needed including challenges, drivers, market shares, and market gaps

 Result

A report with strategic recommendations was presented to the client based on the data received during the study. The recommendations included regulatory requirements for each country of focus. Market gaps in each country were presented based on the end user (oil & gas companies) analysis. Market shaers of key competitors in these markets were estimated. Response from competitors was used to understand the pitfalls and operation hurdles in these challenging markets. The report was well received by the client.

Context

A leading multinational logistics company wanted to expand its business in the life sciences sector in Asia Pacific region. Even though the company was a leader in logistics sector, it had been late to catch up with its competitors in life sciences sector, particularly in the APAC region. The company commissioned a study to a multinational consulting firm to assess its market potentials four markets in the APAC region. The consulting firm hired an associate of AcuBiz as industry expert for overseeing their team and to assess their findings.

Approach

• Four countries with high logistics demand for shipping life sciences and clinical trials samples – Singapore, South Korea, Australia, and Japan- were selected for the study
• Our industry expert guided the team from the consulting firm in conducting secondary research, developing discussion guidelines, finalising the contact list for primary research. As this team had zero background in life sciences and healthcare sectors. Hence this stage was critical for deriving relevant insights
• Since the respondents are scientists and physicians involved in scientific research and clinical trials, understanding their field and asking relevant questions were critical to develop data for the study. Hence, our industry expert guided the team in primary research, often conducting interviews herself demonstrating the best ways to get data from these professionals
• Competitor intelligence was completed cautiously using creative approaches as chances of confidentiality of the client getting compromised was high as there are very few competitors

 Result

The study was presented to the client and was well received. The logistics company launched its operations in life sciences sector soon after.

• Vaccines
• In vitro Diagnostics
• Drug Delivery Technologies
• Bioinformatics
• Natural Products
• Medical Devices
• Agricultural Biotech
• Industrial Biotech