maconda supports Swiss investors Syz Capital and Saturnus Capital in their investment in SK Pharma Logistics, a leading provider of pharma logistics
maconda News February 2022
The family-run Swiss investment boutique Syz Capital, together with Saturnus Capital, is acquiring a majority stake in SK Pharma, a leading German specialist in contract logistics for the healthcare industry. Previously, an experienced team of consultants from strategy expert maconda conducted a comprehensive Commercial Due Diligence to evaluate SK Pharma’s market positioning, strategy, and future prospects.
The outsourcing of often difficult and complex logistics is common practice in many industries. Many pharmaceutical producers also focus on their core business – development, manufacturing, and marketing – and leave logistics to external specialists. As a contract logistics provider, SK Pharma handles all logistical tasks and processes – from goods receipt and repackaging to order picking and shipping to the end customer, often wholesalers, but also pharmacies.
The consultants of the Cologne-based strategy consulting boutique maconda comprehensively examined SK Pharma’s strategic positioning and the relevant market for investors Syz and Saturnus. This included analysing the outsourcing behaviour of pharmaceutical manufacturers and other product providers in the healthcare industry, assessing the regulatory environment, and analysing the customer structure. Customers expect high reliability and, above all, flexibility from their logistics provider, which is why customer satisfaction played a particularly important role in the Commercial Due Diligence.
SK Pharma stands out from many competitors thanks to its high degree of specialisation. This applies particularly to its expertise in so-called temperature-controlled medicines and strictly regulated narcotics, which are stored and handled separately. Not only domestic but also, and especially, foreign manufacturers and pharmaceutical importers rely on Bielefeld-based SK Pharma. Against this background, the company has grown significantly in the double-digit percentage range in recent years.
The discretion, which is not surprising for both the pharmaceutical and logistics industries – companies are reluctant to reveal their hand regarding whether, how much, and to whom parts of the value chain are outsourced – created a few hurdles. However, the maconda consultants, who are extremely experienced in opaque niche markets, were able to overcome these well with their research and analysis methodology, refined over many years. This included numerous discussions with various market participants such as drug and regulatory authorities, contract logistics providers, freight carriers, and logistics experts from the maconda network. The many puzzle pieces that emerged from this collectively enabled a well-founded assessment.
About SK Pharma
The company, previously managed by the Krone family, is based in Bielefeld and is one of Germany’s leading specialists in pharma logistics. Its services are aimed at pharmaceutical companies worldwide. The offering includes the handling of pharmaceutical, medical, cosmetic, and dietary products. This also covers strictly regulated narcotics and temperature-sensitive products subject to cold chain requirements. In addition to storage, order picking, and handover for shipping, the full-service offering also includes additional services such as repackaging and serialisation, and thus value-added steps that require additional GMP standard certification. The service offering is further rounded off by the provision of order processing and accounting, depending on customer requirements.
maconda further expands its expertise in logistics and the pharmaceutical industry
The maconda team has repeatedly dealt with logistics companies in the past, often in relation to the pharmaceutical industry. In addition to medicines and OTC products, maconda consultants have successfully completed various projects, particularly in dietary supplements and dental products. These included several Investment Checks, Commercial Due Diligences, and strategy engagements.
Intensive industry experience: Pharma logistics | Transport logistics | Pharmaceutical wholesale | Medicines | OTC products | dietary supplements | Dental supplies and dental wholesale | Medical technology | various healthcare providers | Sales outsourcing for pharmaceutical manufacturers | Contract manufacturing, contract filling, contract packaging | B2B services / Business Process Outsourcing