Pyott: Entrepreneurial spirit, listening to physicians brought Allergan success

ATLANTA — Allergan CEO David E.I. Pyott, MBA, gave the inaugural Visionary Lecture today at the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery’s annual meeting.

Pyott described the timeline and milestones of Allergan’s medical aesthetics business. In the late 1980s Allergan’s CEO Gavin Herbert purchased Botox, then classified as an orphan drug, for less than $30 million, and at that time annual Botox sales were only about $5 million, Pyott said.

David E. I. Pyott

“Whereas if I don’t do that in a day, I think I could be suffering from hyperhidrosis, and, of course, many of you in the room could help me with my problem,” he said.

Allergan listened to its physician advisers and sought additional uses for Botox. Pyott noted that the milestone for Allergan was Botox Cosmetic. Now, Pyott said, Botox has 25 indications approved in 85 countries in 2012. This year, he said, sales of Botox Cosmetic alone will be $900 million.

Later with both Botox Cosmetic and Juvéderm, Pyott began thinking that there needed to be a new name to describe this genre of medicine. He coined the term “medical aesthetics.” He said he created the term to differentiate it from cosmetics and to make it clear that these products and services would only be available by well-trained physicians.

“It has been our job and a keynote of our success that we listen to you, the leaders of medical aesthetics, and we plan on doing that in the future,” Pyott said.

He said Allergan will continue to bring new technologies and services to the medical aesthetics market, and the company will “have to take considerable risk, but that is part of the fun of being an entrepreneur.” — by Joan-Marie Stiglich