The  strategic  opportunist  who  formed  and  grew  a  multi-­‐million  dollar  generic  and  specialty  injectables  company  in  New  Jersey.  

Kamana  Misra,  PhD    “In boxing you don’t loose by falling, you loose if you fail to get up” - Navneet Puri. A  dream   for  all  PhD’s  chasing   the  entrepreneurial  quest,  this   story   could   be   yours,   or   mine.     The   story   of   InnoPharma   founder,  Navneet   Puri,   PhD,   2015   EY   entrepreneur   of   the   year   and   a   selfdescribed  “opportunist  with  a   solid   strategy.”   InnoPharma  was  sold   recently   to  Pfizer  for   $225   million   with   additional   $135   million   contingent   milestone  payments.  Post  sale,  Navneet  accepted  the  role  of  Vice  President,  worldwide  research   &   development   at   Pfizer   to   ensure   integration   of   business  within  Pfizer   and   a   smooth   transition   of   the   InnoPharma   team.   With   that   goal  achieved,  he  recently  left  this  position  to  work  on  another  start  up.    InnoPharma:  The  Company.  Established   in   2005,   InnoPharma   developed   complex   generics   and  specialty   pharmaceuticals   of   sterile   injectable   and   ophthalmic   dosage  forms.     Former   segment   of   this   business  model  was   targeted   to   provide  options  to  health  care  providers  and  patients  for  some  of  the  products  where  no  generic  option  was  available,  primarily  attributed  to  complexity  of  developing  and  manufacturing  the  drug  products.    The  latter   segment   focused   on   addressing   unmet   clinical   and   market   needs   related   to   formulation   and  presentation   of   existing  molecules.   At   the   time   of   acquisition,   InnoPharma   portfolio   had   11   generic  products   approved  by  FDA,   a  pipeline  of  17  products   filed  with  FDA  and  numerous  products  under  development.  The  deal   is  part  of  Pfizer’s   strategy   to  grow   its   global   sterile   injectables  business,   and  acquisition   of   Hospira   will   further   grow   the   revenue   streams   for   Pfizer’s   Global   Established  Pharmaceutical  (GEP)  business.  The  global  generic  sterile  injectables  market  is  projected  to  grow  from  $37  billion  in  2013  to  $70  billion  in  2020.    The  Man  Behind  The  Company.  So   is  Navneet  a  born  entrepreneur,  someone  who  always  knew  what  he  wanted  to  do?  Surprisingly,  the  answer  is  “no.”  He  grew  up  in  a  big  family  that  saw  its  share  of  struggles  as  their  mother  supported  the   entire   family   single   handedly,   following   their   father’s   demise.   There   was   no   dreams   then,   just  tremendous  respect  for  her  perseverance.  To  date  she  continues  to  be  his  role  model.    Things   began   to   shape   out   after   enrolling   at   Pharmacy   school   in   Chandigarh,   India.   Even   then,   the  dreams  were  not  too  grand.  The  target  was  a  formulator’s   job,  something  every  pharmacist  did  after  graduating.  A  chance  visit  to  the  campus  by  a  senior  introduced  the  dream  of  higher  education  in  the  Promised  Land  and  the  “opportunist”  R&D  scientist  was  born  post  Masters,  a  PhD  in  Pharmaceutical  Sciences  from  Rutgers  University  and  several  internships  in  the  pharmaceutical  and  biotech  industry.  With   so   much   exposure   to   cutting   edge   R&D,   Navneet   decided   to   pursue   a   career   in   product  development.   He   switched   portfolios   between   research   and   development   and   between   big  Pharmaceutical   companies,   soon   realizing   that   novelty   product   development  was   his   niche.  He   also  realized   that   a   big   company   setting  was   not   the   best   place   to   be   innovative   for   him.   That   was   the  turning  point  when  he  decided  to  do  it  on  his  own.      

Navneet  Puri,  PhD.  2015  E&Y  Entrepreneur  of  the  Year.    

   Company  Growth,  Financing  &  M&A  Opportunities.  Not   an   easy   decision,   he   started   InnoPharma   in   2005.     There  was   no   external   funding   for   the   first  couple  of  years  and  work  was  sourced   from  personal  savings.    Despite   firm  belief   in   the  concept,  he  faced  many  breaking  points  and  came  close  to  quitting.  Resilient  and  determined,  he  spent  the  next  3  years   raising   angel   money.   Meanwhile,   the   portfolios   were   limited   and   most   of   them   failed.  Responsible  for  the  team,  the  customers  and  the  investors,  Navneet  remembers  many  days  of  waking  up  thinking  “the  sky  is  falling”.    Finally,  the  venture  capitalists  came  in  2011.  With  the  investment  came  expanded   team   and   evolving   business   plan   while   the   overall   uncertainty   of   business   development,  clinical  trials,  FDA  and  operations  with  limited  resources  continued.    The  venture  capitalists  also  brought  in  a  financial  perspective  of  the  market.  In  late  2013  they  decided  to  gauge  market  interest  for  prospective  M&A  transactions,  with  a  target  to  maximize  the  potential  of  what  was  already  created  at  InnoPharma.  An  investment  banker  was  hired  who  submitted  a  report  in  2   weeks   indicating   a   very   high   market   interest   for   InnoPharma.   This   was   largely   due   to   their  credibility   in   the   market   for   what   and   how   InnoPharma   team   conducted   its   operations   and   their  pipeline  of  differentiated  products.     JP  Morgan  Chase  was  formally  retained   in  March  2014.    By  June  2014  InnoPharma  had  multiple  offers.    The  deal  was  finalized  with  Pfizer.      “We  went  for  Pfizer  not  only  for  the  money,  but  also  what  they  had  to  offer  to  the  team,”  says  Navneet  who   is   a   firm   believer   that   the   right   team   is   the   most   critical   part   of   developing   any   business.    According  to  him,  success  of  any  venture  is  dependent  on  team  experts  who  have  professional  respect  for  each  other,  and  who  can  agree  to  disagree.  “I  was  lucky  to  have  a  great  team  and  my  major  concern  was  how  they  will  fare  after  the  acquisition,”  he  adds.  Each  member  had  a  unique  expertise  that  he  did  not  want  to  be  diluted  with  the  acquisition.    The  negotiations  with  Pfizer  went  well  and  the  team  was  not  only  allowed  to  come  and  work  as  is,  but  also  remains  value  contributor  post-­‐merger  with  Hospira  in  a  much  larger  company  setting.  Navneet  had  moved  with  the  team  to  Pfizer  to  ensure  their  smooth  integration.    Having  achieved  this  in  the  year  spent  at  Pfizer,  he  has  decided  to  move  on  to  explore  other  start-­‐up  opportunities.  He  is  happy  to  leave  a  company  well  integrated  and  looks  forward  to  its  expansion  under  a  great  management.    Mentoring.  Navneet   and   his   wife   are   strong   believers   of   giving   back   to   the   society   and   actively   engage   in  educational  and  healthcare   reform   initiatives.  Navneet  did  not  have   resources   to   turn   to  with   initial  business  challenges;  something  he  feels  could  have  saved  the  company  tremendous  time  and  money.  He  therefore  actively  mentors  budding  entrepreneurs  who  face  similar  problems.      His  advice  to  budding  science  entrepreneurs,  “If  money  is  the  only  motivation,  stay  out.    It’s  not  an  easy  journey.  Perseverance  is  the  name  of  the  game  and  a  strong  will  power  and  a  passion  for  what  you  do  is   what   will   separate   you   from   others,”   he   adds.   Have   a   crystal   clear   motivation   and   a   good  business  plan  that  focuses  on  fundamentals,  and  long-­‐term  differentiation.