Previously, while Huons was awaiting clinical trials of Hutox in August, it was revealed that the company had already managed to secure W190b ($170m) worth of contracts to export Hutox to Europe, Brazil and Iran.
“The contract is significant as it is for one of the fastest growing markets in the global botulinum toxin market,” said Huons CEO, Um Key-an. “We plan to conduct clinical trials and product approval without any hitches together with our Chinese partners.”
10-year plan
Huons planned to launch clinical and product licensing in China, excluding Hong Kong and Macau, through Imeik.
According to a document published on the Korea Exchange’s KIND database, Imeik has agreed to supply Hutox exclusively for 10 years after the approval of the Chinese license.
The document states that if Imeik does not fulfil the minimum purchase obligations for two consecutive or non-consecutive years, the company will lose its right to distribute Hutox.
Korea Biomedical Review reported that the two companies chose not to disclose the details of the contract.
However, according to the document on KIND, Imeik will receive an upfront fee of approximately $1m, along with a few tiers of milestone fees. If Imeik fails to procure a licence, Huons would expect the company to return the fees that have been paid out to them.
Aggressive roll out
Imeik is a Chinese company that researches and manufactures biomedical products and devices for aesthetic purposes.
As such the company has strong ties to research institutes and a network of over 3,000 aestheticians and dermatology practices across China.
With Imeik’s extensive network, expertise and distribution know-how, Huons is confident it will be able to advance its product into the Chinese BTX market aggressively.
Huons expects to generate sales of Hutox by combining them with the marketing and sales of Imeik’s hyaluronic acid filler IFRESH, reports Korea Biomedical Review.
Booming BTX market
In beauty-obsessed China, the medical aesthetics market has been experiencing rapid growth. According to Statista, the size of the industry is projected to be worth $20.6bn.
Owing to the influence of selfies and South Korean culture, aesthetic procedures have become pervasive in Chinese culture. In August, Tencent, parent company of popular Chinese messenger WeChat, raised $50m in funding for a social network app cantered around plastic surgery.
To keep up with the demand for BTX procedures, Huons previously revealed that it plans to build a second, more productive factory to keep up with the demand of Hutox.
Once completed, both factories will be able to produce six million vials of Hutox annually.
Currently the major BTX players dabbling in the Chinese market include Allergen, Medytox, Ipsen, US World Meds, Merz Pharmaceuticals and Daewoong Pharmaceutical.
