Hugel Obtains Product Approval for 'HA Filler' in China... Local Launch in Q3

Published 19 Apr.2022 08:25(KST)

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Hugel is accelerating its competitiveness in the Chinese market by entering the Chinese HA filler market following its botulinum toxin products.

Hugel announced on the 19th that it recently obtained product approval from the Chinese National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for its HA filler "The Chaeum" (Chinese name '붜안룬').

As the global medical aesthetic industry, centered on non-surgical procedures, rapidly grows, China is a market where related sectors such as botulinum toxin and HA fillers have been continuously expanding. In particular, the HA filler market size is expected to grow from 4.9 billion yuan (approximately 950 billion KRW) in 2020 to over 10 billion yuan (approximately 1.93 trillion KRW) next year, and reach 15.7 billion yuan (approximately 3 trillion KRW) by 2025.

Hugel was the first domestic company to obtain product approval for botulinum toxin in China in 2020, and in October of the same year, it also submitted an application for HA filler product approval. Hugel successfully entered the local market with its botulinum toxin product "Botulax" (export name "Retivo") in February last year, and with the recent approval of The Chaeum, it has become the only domestic company to enter both the Chinese toxin and HA filler markets.

The company explained that it is making final preparations to launch the HA filler locally in the third quarter. Unlike the Chinese toxin market, where only four companies including Hugel hold approvals, the Chinese filler market is fiercely competitive with over 20 companies and more than 30 formulations. Accordingly, Hugel plans to rapidly expand its market presence through optimized marketing in collaboration with its local partner Sahwan Pharmaceutical, similar to its strategy with Botulax. In particular, it plans to actively leverage the synergy with its botulinum toxin formulation, which has already secured over 2,500 local hospitals and clinics as customers.

Targeting the main consumer group of people in their 20s and 30s, who have a high interest in "contouring procedures," Hugel will operate diverse programs for Chinese medical professionals and institutions, ranging from technique development to academic content creation based on these techniques. It also plans to lower entry barriers for local consumers through reasonable pricing.

A Hugel representative said, "Following last year's entry into the Chinese botulinum toxin market, obtaining product approval for this HA filler brings us one step closer to our corporate goal of dominating the Chinese medical aesthetic market," adding, "We will do our best to establish ourselves as a leading filler product representing the local market in China, where we are newly entering."