Experience gives local companies competitive edge

MEDINFAR, an independent pharmaceutical company established in 1970, has experienced substantial growth in recent years by focusing on increased production, a wide product range, new development projects—both its own and in cooperation with other enterprises—and a firm commitment to quality.
The exclusively Portuguese-owned company provides proscribed drugs for general medicinal, cardiological, gastroenterological and dermatological use. However, a major slice of its business is also focused on over-the-counter drugs and in supplying equipment to hospitals and clinics. It also produces herbal products and food
supplements.

JOãO ALMEIDA LOPES Director General of Medinfar

“Personally, I do not believe in concentrating on a core business,” says João Almeida Lopes, Medinfar’s Director General. “I prefer to put eggs in
different baskets, to have different approaches and different practices. As long as they don’t conflict with each other, we can spread our risks. We can respond to the market in a better way. Depending on what the market wants, we can cater for its needs in a quick responsive manner and in a competitive fashion.”
He believes that as a medium-sized company with experience of the local market,
Medinfar has the edge over the big multinationals operating in Portugal.

“This is a very competitive sector, but we have the advantage that we have been in the market for 12 years,” he says. “We know the market better than foreign multinationals, we are familiar with the trends and thus have a greater degree of flexibility and faster response to its demands.
“We can get the whole company involved in the different products and the strategy or any shifts in market demand. It’s a typical advantage of a medium-sized company—we have a greater degree of sensitivity to market changes and can service niches that the multinationals cannot cater for swiftly enough.”

QUICK RESPONSE Medinfar adopts a variety of approaches and practices to enable it to meet the changing needs of its market

Expertise gathered over time from working with leading international pharmaceutical corporations, plus ISO 9002 quality certification, makes Medinfar an attractive partner for any enterprise interested in introducing new drugs to Portugal, Mr. Almeida Lopes believes.
“We do co-markets with other companies that are in Portugal and we have licenses for other companies that are not here, such as Japanese, French or Italian firms. We fill the gap for foreign companies where it does not pay them to set up a subsidiary.
“We can facilitate distribution of their products by eliminating red tape, we may open doors with authorities and we can speed up the process. We do this with local companies too.”

The company is the promoter of an initiative to stimulate and reward the careers of young researchers within the EU. The Medinfar European Prize in Physiology is also designed to highlight the importance of Medinfar and of Portugal's pharmaceutical industry on the international arena.
Mr. Almeida Lopes would like to see more links between companies and the universities. “This transformation is slowly taking place. More researchers are getting opportunities to work with companies and more links are being established,” he says.