Celltrion leverages Gifrer acquisition to expand European pharmacy sales

Celltrion has completed the post-merger integration of Gifrer, a French healthcare company acquired in May, to accelerate its expansion into the European pharmacy market. Celltrion Chairman Seo Jung-jin recently visited France to inspect the organizational restructuring, sales strategies, and the activation of Gifrer’s extensive distribution network.

Gifrer provides Celltrion with access to approximately 9,000 pharmacies and 800 hospitals across France, covering a portfolio of 140 products including over-the-counter (OTC) medicines and health supplements. This acquisition allows Celltrion to complement its existing hospital-centered direct sales model with a pharmacy-based channel, creating an omni-channel system that covers everything from prescription to dispensing.

The strategy is particularly aimed at capitalizing on France’s policy of allowing pharmacy substitution for certain biological medicines. Celltrion plans to use this network to promote its subcutaneous (SC) formulation biosimilars, starting with bone disease treatments like Stovoclo and Osenvelt. Additionally, the company intends to diversify its portfolio by distributing third-party products and launching its dermacosmetic brand, Gpiderm, in the French pharmacy market early next year. France will serve as a testbed for a direct sales model that Celltrion plans to scale across Western Europe.