Two of the countries the Welsh biotech managed to branch out into were Australia and Spain.
Australia
Australia is a very important market for CyDen. It is geographically vast with a unique interest in dealing with the effects of sun-damaged skin and a great need for the skin rejuvenation treatments that iPulse technology delivers. However Australia was also a difficult market for CyDen to break into, mainly because of the physical distance from Wales and the time difference which made meetings, training sessions and even conversations difficult.
However, through collaboration with an Australian company we overcame these problems.
High Tech Lasers was a small Australian firm that specialised in selling high performance lasers to professionals in the salon market. But after talks with the team at High Tech Lasers actually asked permission to use the iPulse brand.
We worked closely with iPulse Australia to replicate its own training programme using an approved independent IPL (intense pulsed light) trainer who is based in Australia.
Intelligent use of technology has allowed this partnership to work. The company have set up a special section for distributors on their website. This allows our partner to cost-effectively produce their own marketing materials by giving them access to artwork and copy which can be adapted to the local market.
Most companies simply translate the copy into their local language and print off as many marketing materials as they need but interestingly iPulse Australia put a lot of work into adapting these materials. The Australian team have come up with some great ideas that we are now going to use in the UK. This is just one example of how this collaborative approach is equally beneficial for both companies.
The distributors' section of also gives distributors access to training manuals, clinical updates, posters and flyers advertising iPulse which distributors can give to individual salons.
One of the reasons this partnership works so well is because the Australian team take a very ethical approach and uphold the values of the global iPulse brand. For example iPulse Australia will only sell to distributors who are legally registered to deliver IPL treatments to the public (surprisingly this is not always common practice in the light-based therapy field.)
This collaboration has allowed us to tap into a specialised local market infrastructure whilst upholding the clinical standards and training regime of the iPulse brand on the other side of the world.
From a financial point of view this partnership has been very successful for both companies. iPulse Australia are on track to sell at least £300,000 of iPulse products in 2006 alone.
Spain
Spain is the largest market for IPL treatments in Europe so we knew partnership with a Spanish distributor had to be successful for their global strategy to be realised.
Davanzia is a Spanish company that distributes various cosmetic products to professional markets. We began collaborating with Davanzia in spring 2005 but initially this distributor's performance was disappointing and the Spanish company continued to fail to meet the targets projected.
At this point many companies would have ended the relationship, swapping to another distributor or even setting up their own team in Spain, but we are passionate believers in proactive partnership development. We held a number of strategic meetings with Davanzia to work with them to understand and overcome the local market challenges. This included a programme of training sessions, showing Davanzia how to sell iPulse-devices by highlighting the advantages the brand's unique and patented technology has over other products in the competitive Spanish marketplace.
In recent months this partnership has helped Davanzia become one of CyDen's most successful distributors. This remarkable turnaround has benefited both companies and is down to sheer faith in a collaborative approach.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2006