L&C Bio (290650.KQ) is stepping up its entry into the U.S. market after signing an exclusive supply contract for Rituo, a skin booster made from human-derived extracellular matrix (ECM). The company plans to use its local partner's human tissue distribution network for pre-marketing this year before expanding supply in earnest next year.
L&C Bio said on the 12th that it had signed an exclusive supply contract for the Rituo series with a U.S. human tissue and bio products specialist that also operates a tissue bank. The contract runs from that day through the end of 2031, a period of about five years, with a minimum value of about $60 million (about 82 billion won).
The contract value is based on the minimum purchase amount for the Rituo 150 mg product. The annual minimum rises from about $900,000 this year to $7.2 million next year and $16.2 million in 2031. Rituo Fine and Rituo V are not included in the minimum purchase amount, and the agreement allows them to be supplied separately depending on production capacity and local demand.
The local partner holds a tissue bank license and distribution infrastructure that allow it to supply human tissue products across the United States, with a customer base of about 17,000 hospitals and clinics and a network of leading medical professionals. An L&C Bio official said the partner's name was not disclosed because of confidentiality obligations under the contract, adding that the company would identify the partner when Rituo makes its first shipment to the United States.
This year, the two companies plan to build an initial sales base by conducting product training and academic activities for local medical professionals and key opinion leaders (KOLs). The strategy is to establish a network of medical professionals and begin full-scale supply to the United States next year.
L&C Bio will also expand its production facilities in line with the supply increase. The company plans to raise capacity in stages by expanding existing facilities and building a new plant in Dongtan. The minimum purchase amount was also set at a level the company can supply reliably, taking into account current capacity and planned expansion.
Lee Hwan-chul, chairman of L&C Bio, said the company would secure a base of local medical professionals and KOLs through pre-marketing this year, begin stable supply next year and grow Rituo into a leading ECM brand in the U.S. market. He added that the company would continue to expand the scale of its U.S. supply as production capacity grows.