Meda Acquires Two OTC Brands in the US and Canada from GlaxoSmithKline
January 4, 2011 — New York — Meda AB (“Meda”), a leading international specialty pharma company, today announced that it has acquired two over-the-counter consumer products brands from GlaxoSmithKline LLC (“GSK”), for approximately $27 million (USD). The brands being acquired are:
- Vivarin®, the #1 caffeine supplement brand in the U.S. for over 25 years;
- Contac®, a well-known brand which offers a variety of formulas for relief of cold and flu symptoms;
The combined sales of these well-known brands is in excess of $12 million (USD), with strong profit margins. In a company press release, Anders Lönner, CEO of Meda, noted, “By adding these two well known consumer brands, we continue to develop our US OTC presence”. These brands will be integrated into Meda’s U.S. operations, which were strengthened by the acquisition of Alaven Pharmaceutical LLC in August 2010.
Meda and GSK are also pursuing further discussions on additional OTC acquisitions in the US market.
Sawaya Segalas & Co., LLC, a leading consumer investment banking firm, acted as exclusive financial adviser to GSK in connection with the transaction.
Note: Dollar amounts were converted into USD from SEK at a conversion rate of 0.147.