Drug firm Elder Pharmaceuticals will launch 12 new products this fiscal in the areas of gynaecology, pain management and nutraceuticals.
"We had targeted 15 products for this financial year, three have already been launched and we are looking at another 12 products for the next three quarters," Elder Pharmaceuticals Joint Managing Director Alok Saxena told PTI in an interview.
"All the products are in the mandate and prescription market and we are targeting gynaecology, pain management and nutraceuticals segments," he added.
The company is also planning to spend up to Rs 55 crore in the next two years for increasing its manpower, mainly the sales force, updating its research and development facilities and for brand building exercises.
"We are looking at between Rs 40-55 crore investments for these exercises," Saxena said.
The company had recently announced the plans to increase its sales and marketing force by 1,000 in the next two years.
Saxena said Elder Pharmaceuticals is looking to expand in the over-the-counter (OTC) segment, in which it has almost negligible presence at present.
"This [OTC] is the segment which we are looking at and probably is an area of growth for us as we go forward," he said.
He said the firm is also looking to enhance presence in the functional foods market, leveraging on UK-based NutraHealth Care, a company specialising in neutraceutical products, which it had acquired last year.
"The Indian [functional foods] market is estimated to be of Rs 4,400 crore. Elder already has a range of products for women care and we are identifying opportunities where we can fulfil all daily nutritional and medical needs for women," Saxena said.
Elder Pharmaceuticals manufactures and markets prescription pharmaceutical brands, surgical and medical devices.