HUGEL, a medical aesthetics corporations that entered the U.S. market with the wrinkle-improving botulinum toxin drug "Letybo" (brand name in Korea: Botulax), said it will pursue a strategy starting this year in the United States that combines direct sales and partnerships.
Kari Strom, HUGEL global chief executive officer (CEO), said in a presentation on the Asia-Pacific (APEC) track at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference held on the 15th (local time) at the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco that the goal of the "hybrid sales" strategy—running direct sales and partnerships in parallel—is to raise the company's U.S. market share to 10% by 2028 and 14% by 2030.
The company also set a goal of boosting U.S. market penetration to achieve 900 billion won in annual revenue by 2028, with 30% of that generated in the United States.
In March 2024, HUGEL received product approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for "Letybo" (brand name in Korea: Botulax). The company then began full-scale U.S. sales in 2025 with local distribution partner Benev, and it plans to further strengthen its marketing strategy starting this year.
Strom, who joined HUGEL in Oct. last year, is a medical aesthetics expert who served as a senior vice president at U.S. drugmaker AbbVie and as global president of Allergan Aesthetics from May 2020 to Feb. this year.
Strom also presented regional targets through 2028: Korea at about 25% of sales, the United States nearing about 30%, China, Europe, Australia, and Brazil at about 25%, and the remaining regions maintaining 15%.
Alongside sales growth, the company plans to keep its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) margin at 50%. On a consolidation basis, HUGEL's cumulative revenue for the third quarter last year was 306 billion won, with operating profit of 143 billion won. Earlier, full-year 2024 revenue was 373 billion won, with operating profit of 166.3 billion won.
Global CEO Strom said, "Focusing on the United States, we will push a full-fledged global transition by expanding market share worldwide and pursue aggressive sales expansion through business results such as portfolio reorganization," adding, "Above all, we plan to make companywide efforts to maintain a sound financial structure, including keeping the industry's highest level of operating margin."
HUGEL also plans to focus on expanding a product portfolio that can create synergies with its existing mainstay products, including botulinum toxin and hyaluronic acid (HA) fillers. While botulinum toxin paralyzes muscles to smooth fine lines, HA fillers fill sunken areas to remove deep wrinkles and enhance elasticity and contour.
The company will pursue strategic business development such as license-in and co-promotion, respond to demand in the skin booster market (a procedure that directly injects skin nutrients into the dermis to help improve skin), and build an aesthetics lineup optimized for the global market.
Jang Doo-hyun, HUGEL's president, described the profitability strategy amid intensifying competition, saying, "Fighting only on toxin price is a chicken game," and added, "We are creating a structure that strengthens clinic revenue and our revenue together by packaging (bundling) toxin, filler, and booster for sale."