Greece Despite the difficulties of the financial crisis and subsequent austerity legislation, pharma firms implanted in Greece have nonetheless continued to exhibit great commitment and staying power. “The big multinationals have not been panicking and resorting to large-scale layoffs or fleeing the market.” Konstantinos Kofinas, Merck “Regardless of the challenges posed…

Poland Poland’s entrance into the EU has been a catalyst for growth that has allowed the country to flourish, shown by the nation’s ranking as the eighth largest economy in Europe according to the World Bank. The introduction into Europe has sprung the borders open, and for the Polish pharmaceutical industry this…

Ireland Philip Martin, founder and CEO of Cora Systems in Ireland, explains why his company is ideally positioned to help the pharmaceutical industry increase efficiency and save costs through their agile, flexible and intuitive project management software solutions. “Along with tech improvements, incredible new complexity in how the industry operates has…

Ireland Much like the Irish sport of hurling, conducting R&D in Ireland is something often overlooked – unfairly, as proponents would say. Ireland has always faced a number of intrinsic hurdles in this space, not least the small patient population and more recently, the economic crisis, which forced the Irish healthcare…

Ireland The strong flow of FDI into Ireland has led to a vibrant ecosystem of Irish service providers, who have grown up servicing the needs of pharma MNCs. Working for FDI clients has put Irish companies to the test and pushed them to work to the highest standards. “Top global pharma…

Luxembourg Despite its miniscule size, Luxembourg has managed to specialize in three key areas and now has a strong claim to be a global leader in personalized healthcare, e-health and data security, and pharma logistics and air freight. “In championing personalized health, the Luxembourg authorities are indicating that they are both…

Luxembourg Sound infrastructure, a prime location in the heart of Europe, government support, and an unwavering focus on quality are all helping make the tiny principality of Luxembourg a serious player in global healthcare logistics. “Some high ranked senior logistics executives from pharma companies have commented that [the Luxair Cargo Healthcare &…

London Among the assorted pharma CEOs and KOLs gathered at the recent Financial Times Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Conference in London, debate raged on the pros and cons of a pure play strategy, focusing on a few key therapeutic areas, compared to a more diversified approach. If the 1990s and early 2000s, were all…

France Shedding light on the unique business model of French pharma’s most successful mid-cap.   Not long ago, Laboratories Servier was considered a somewhat mysterious and opaque actor on the world pharmaceuticals stage. Privately owned, smaller and sleeker than many of its direct competitors, but nonetheless formidably successful, Servier has, for…

Slovakia Pharma companies in Slovakia are managing to circumvent the problems inherent in the size of the local market by focusing on the country’s advantages in market access and regional leadership, as well as through joining together with affiliates in neighboring Czech Republic. “Slovakia is a developed and established EUR 1.25…

Actelion Johnson & Jonhson’s interest in taking over the Swiss biotech group Actelion has been confirmed, with the Wall Street Journal estimating that a total takeover price could top USD 20 billion. As Actelion is a market leader in some therapeutic areas such as pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), the acquisition could…

Switzerland It is tempting to characterize Switzerland’s global pharma and life science hotspots as beginning and ending with Basel – home of industry giants Roche and Novartis. However, Zurich, Geneva, and even tiny Zug are all now staking serious claims for global recognition in this area. “Zurich is the world’s smallest…