Cellmid 2018 Annual Report
4
CHAIRMAN’S
LETTER
Dear Shareholder,
It is my pleasure to present
to you the 2018 Annual
Report. The Company has
continued to make good
progress in developing
and globalizing its
consumer health division,
and in maturing and
focusing its midkine assets.
Our expansion and development of the evolis® anti-aging
hair care product range and distribution channels continued
apace, and is reflected in the strong revenue growth for the
year, despite the usual capital constraints on funding that
growth. Our established markets of Australia and Japan
performed well, with the Japanese operations pleasingly
returning a profit for the third year. We are confident that
the opening in October 2017 of our first “Hair Biology”
concept store in Ginza, Tokyo, as well as the expanded
product range, will drive further growth in the flagship
Japanese market.
Our consumer health global marketing and distribution
strategy has been clearly focused on the important USA
market, and more recently China. In the USA, our entering
into premium retail partnerships with Bloomingdales and
Neiman Marcus is especially significant and evidences the
premium product branding for the evolis Professional range.
It is anticipated that the USA market will start to contribute
materially to revenue growth in the current year.
On China, our efforts to access and penetrate this highly
prospective market achieved a significant breakthrough with
the signing in May 2018 of an exclusive agreement for the
distribution of evolis® lotions and shampoos with Beijing
Fukangren Bio-Pharm Co Ltd. Importantly, this partnership
substantially de-risks the regulatory path for access to the
world’s fastest growing market; regulatory approval for the
evolis products is expected during the current financial year.
Importantly, the penetration of existing markets, and growth
in new markets, is underpinned by the mounting evidence
of the exceptional efficacy of the evolis® products. Our first
US consumer study using the entire evolis® Professional
product range, reported in August 2017, delivered strong
positive results; improved hair growth, reduced hair loss,
and improved hair texture.