Success Stories
Bio-Research Laboratories Ltd.
Acquisition in a Rapidly Changing Industry
Divestiture of a Non-Core Operation
Exit Via Strategic Sale
Bio-Research Laboratories Ltd. is one of the world's leading pre-clinical contract research organizations (CRO). The Company, located near Montreal, was established in 1965 and has an extensive international client base in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries.
In the early 1990's, the pharmaceutical industry began to undergo rapid and profound changes that affected CROs such as Bio-Research. Health care providers, forced to find ways to reduce their increasing costs, sought to curtail research investments and achieve new efficiencies through consolidation. In this new world, Bio-Research and other CROs experienced a sharp decline in the demand for their services. The business of traditional clients declined and formerly strong product lines weakened. As a result , many investors shied away from investing in CROs.
CAI took a different view. We believed that in order to ensure its growth, the pharmaceutical industry could not maintain reduced levels of R&D activity and, furthermore, given industry leaders' continuing need to lower costs, they would increasingly outsource their R&D needs. This meant that the long-term prospects for independent CROs were attractive and were not reflected in their depressed share prices.
CAI assessed the risk/reward opportunity offered by an investment in Bio-Research to be excellent and, in 1992, CAI acquired 40% of the Company.
Subsequent to our investment, CAI played an active role in expanding Bio-Research 's business and improving its profitability. The Company reduced its costs and placed a renewed emphasis on the marketing of new, higher margin product lines. In the years following CAI's investment, the Company's profitability improved significantly.
Throughout the duration of its investment in Bio-Research, CAI held discussions with industry players and, in so doing, identified many potential purchasers of the Company. In 1996, Bio-Research was sold to ClinTrials Research Inc., a leading international CRO.
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Divestiture of a Non-Core Operation
Exit Via Strategic Sale
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