Last checked at 3 May 2016 07:00
Venture Life Group PLC
("Venture Life" or the "Group" or the "Company")
First distribution agreements signed for UltraDEX range
Bracknell, UK - 3 May 2016: Venture Life Group PLC (AIM: VLG), the international consumer self-care group focused on developing, manufacturing and commercialising products for the ageing population, announces that it has signed its first new international distribution agreements for the UltraDEX range of fresh breath products since acquiring the range with the Periproducts Limited acquisition which completed on 4 March 2016 (the "Acquisition").
The Company has signed exclusive five year distribution agreements with Laboratorios Serra Pamies, S.A ("Serra Pamies") in Spain and Shanghai Rifto Medical Co., Ltd ("Shanghai Rifto") in China.
Serra Pamies was founded in 1885 and is part of the SP Group. Serra Pamies's self-care division promotes its products to pharmacies and specialists, and UltraDEX will be an important product range for them. The experience of Serra Pamies within the Spanish oral healthcare sector has been an important factor in Venture Life's decision to enter into an exclusive distribution agreement with Serra Pamies for the whole of the Spanish market.
Shanghai Rifto is a specialist dental sales company selling directly into the dental channel in China and this UltraDEX distribution agreement gives Shanghai Rifto exclusivity in the professional dental sector in this market. In the OTC oral healthcare market in China, brands are typically marketed initially through the dental channel to gain professional endorsement and recommendation to patients. In due course, and as the brand becomes established, Venture Life intends to appoint an appropriate partner as the distributor for UltraDEX in the OTC pharmacy channel.
The UltraDEX products are already approved for distribution in the EU but the timing of the launch of UltraDEX in China is subject to local registration of the products with the Chinese Food and Drug Administration.
These agreements reflect the strong interest being seen by Venture Life in the UltraDEX range across Europe and beyond by potential distribution partners since the Acquisition. The combination of UltraDEX's long-established UK retail presence, the quality of the products in the range and the supporting intellectual property (including clinical data) is generating encouraging levels of international interest in the brand.
Jerry Randall, Venture Life's Chief Executive Officer, commented: "The speed with which we have signed these agreements supports our view at the time of the Acquisition that there is considerable international potential for the UltraDEX brand. We expect these two agreements alone to generate levels of revenue in the next 12 months for Venture Life which would represent a significant multiple of the 2015 international revenues of UltraDEX achieved prior to the Acquisition. With the level of interest we are seeing in UltraDEX we fully expect to conclude further distribution agreements on this range during 2016 and beyond. As set out at the time of the Acquisition, we will also be investing in the brand in the UK as we look to grow existing UK revenues."
For further information please contact:
Venture Life Group PLC
Jerry Randall, Chief Executive Officer +44 (0)1344 742 870
James Hunter, Chief Financial Officer
Panmure Gordon (UK) Limited (Nominated Adviser and Broker)
Freddy Crossley +44 (0) 20 7886 2500
Peter Steel
Duncan Monteith Corporate Finance
Tom SalvesenCorporate Broking
Square1 Consulting
David Bick +44 (0)20 7929 5599
Brian Alexander
About Venture Life
Venture Life is an international consumer self-care company focused on developing, manufacturing and commercialising products for the ageing population. The Group's product range and pipeline currently includes the UltraDEX oral care products range, food supplements for lowering cholesterol and maintaining brain function, dermo-cosmetics for addressing the signs of ageing, and medical devices for improving minor aches and pains, dry eyes and itchy skin. The products, which typically are recommended by pharmacists or healthcare practitioners, are available primarily through pharmacies supplied by the Group's international distribution partners.
Through its manufacturing company, Biokosmes, the Group also provides development and manufacturing services to companies in the medical devices and cosmetic sectors.
About UltraDEX
The UltraDEX range of premium products includes mouthwashes, which are alcohol-free, and toothpastes and the products are used to treat bad breath, remineralise and whiten teeth and kill bacteria which cause plaque, which can in turn lead to tooth decay and gum disease. Incorporating patent protected and licensed intellectual property, the UltraDEX® products, including UltraDEX® Sensitive Recalcifying & Whitening range, are regarded as being particularly effective at managing bad breath, as supported by clinical data evidencing efficacy.