Johnson & Johnson to acquire breast implant producer
Global pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson have agreed to acquire breast implant maker Mentor Corp.
The deal will seal at over £700 million in a rare 10-figure deal that will boost Johnson & Johnson’s aesthetic product offerings and increase competition against competitor Allergan Inc.
Stock in Mentor has been badly hurt as the weakened economy slows the market for those seeking breast augmentations.
While Mentor is heavily focused on the implant market, which caters mostly to cosmetic surgeries, the company aims to introduce new products in 2009 and 2010 that fight facial wrinkles.
Mentor will answer to Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon surgical products franchise. Incoming group chairman for Ethicon, Gary Pruden, told CNN that the company likes Mentor’s product pipeline and thinks it will fit well with other coming aesthetic offerings – including products for minimally invasive face lifts.
The acquisition of Mentor brings Johnson & Johnson a company that competes against Allergan, the firm which produces wrinkle-relaxer Botox, in the breast implant market.
Mentor is set to compete even further with Allergan after the release of their two facial fillers next year. Johnson & Johnson already has a collagen injection facial filler on the market.
It’s thought that the acquisition of Mentor will give Johnson & Johnson a strong cosmetic surgery sales force.
Earlier this month, it was revealed that cosmetic surgery patients are on the hunt for cheaper cosmetic bargains during the economic downturn. Current market conditions have brought about an increase in non-surgical skin treatments that cost less.
Tags: Breast Augmentation, face lifts, facial fillers, Johnson & Johnson, non-surgical procedures, wrinkle relaxers