Novo Nordisk, the global drugmaker that has been losing ground to rival Eli Lilly in the obesity treatment market, is rebranding itself as "Novo." The move is aimed at regaining market share through a business strategy targeting individual consumers.
Novo said on the 14th that it would rebrand as Novo and push forward with a renewal of its corporate culture, calling it "the beginning of a new chapter," according to CNBC. The name was created in 1989 when two rival Danish pharmaceutical companies, Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium and Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium, merged, meaning it is changing after 37 years. The company said, however, that its legal entity name will remain Novo Nordisk.
Novo also unveiled a broad marketing plan centered on the phrase "Lasting Health Starts Now." As drug sales shift from a hospital-centered business-to-business (B2B) model to direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales, the company laid out four principles to gain an edge: innovation that puts patients first; stronger performance to create greater value for all stakeholders; clearer priorities and simplified workflows; and an uncompromising stance on patient safety and ethics. More detailed changes to its business strategy are set to be disclosed on the 21st at Capital Markets Day, a large-scale investor event.
Behind Novo's first rebranding in decades is an urgent recognition that it must reverse its slide against Lilly. In the second quarter, Lilly held a 60.9% share of the obesity treatment market while Novo took just 38.8%, according to healthcare data firm IQVIA. The company appeared to regain momentum in January when it launched Wegovy Pill, an oral obesity treatment, ahead of Lilly, but its shares have fallen about 15% so far this year. Making matters worse, it recently halted three clinical trials of cardiovascular treatments early. Another concern is that semaglutide, the key ingredient in Wegovy and Ozempic, is approaching patent expiration in the early to mid-2030s in Europe and the U.S. Semaglutide-related sales account for as much as 75% of Novo's revenue this year.
The market's focus now is on how firmly Novo can establish an edge in the oral obesity drug market. As of the last week of August, weekly prescriptions for Wegovy Pill in the U.S. topped 170,000, giving the company a first-mover advantage from its early launch. Novo recently decided to launch Wegovy Pill in Germany and plans to complete rollouts in major markets by 2027.
