Carrie Strom is jumping from one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies to a smaller rival.
South Korean medical aesthetics company Hugel Inc. last month announced Strom, the former senior vice president of AbbVie and president of its global aesthetics unit Allergan Aesthetics, as its new global chief executive.
“My priority is to build on Hugel’s leadership in South Korea and transform it into a global aesthetics powerhouse, raising the bar for how we serve customers and patients around the world,” Strom said in a statement.
The announcement came eight months after Strom ended her tenure at Allergan, where she spent 14 years in various roles such as senior director of marketing for Botox Neurosciences and vice president of sales and marketing for U.S. medical aesthetics.
Strom oversaw the $5 billion portfolio, including flagship brands Botox Cosmetic, the Juvéderm collection of dermal fillers and CoolSculpting body contouring, among others.
The Hugel executive leadership team will report directly to Strom in her new role, the company said, including the recently appointed head of Hugel Korea, Daniel Chang.
Established in 2001, Hugel said it’s the market-leading brand in South Korea. Hugel is listed on the Korea Stock Exchange (145020.KQ), where it has a market cap of around $2 billion.
U.S.-Focused Global Expansion
Hugel’s appointment of Strom coincides with the company looking to beef up its presence in the U.S.
“Ms. Strom is a proven enterprise leader who we are confident will lead Hugel to the next level,” Hugel Chairman Suk Cha said in a statement. “We look forward to accelerating our expansion in the Americas and other key global markets under her leadership.”
Hugel and Croma-Pharma GmbH, an Austrian-based company focused on minimally invasive medicine, in 2018 formed a joint venture, Hugel Aesthetics, which is based in Newport Beach, to develop and commercialize botulinum toxin, hyaluronic acid fillers and additional aesthetic portfolio products in the U.S., Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Last year, Hugel received FDA approval for its neurotoxin Letybo, branded as Botulax in South Korea, and is now fully commercialized in the U.S. through a partnership with Benev Company Inc., a drug manufacturer in Mission Viejo.
This makes Letybo one of six FDA-approved neuromodulators in the U.S., joining Botox and Newport Beach-based Evolus Inc.’s Jeuveau.
Hugel said that it aims to capture 10% of the U.S. medical aesthetics market within three years. Last year, it reported $141 million in net sales for Letybo, a 20% increase from the previous year.
The company also plans on accelerating expansion into the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, a key emerging market for medical aesthetics, according to Hugel.
Pharmaceutical Industry Veteran
Strom oversaw worldwide operations from Irvine as senior vice president of AbbVie and president of Global Allergan Aesthetics.
Chicago-based AbbVie, which acquired Allergan for $63 billion in 2020, has an estimated 1,673 employees in Irvine.
Her tenure at Allergan began in 2011 as a product director for Botox.
She helped launch the first urological indication for the cosmetic injection.
“It marked the beginning of a 14-year progression in multiple roles where I had the privilege of learning from spectacular leaders, building best-in-class brands and organizations, launching new technologies, and elevating the standard of care for patients in urology, neurology, and medical aesthetics,” Strom wrote in an April LinkedIn post announcing her departure from Allergan.
Before Allergan, Strom spent more than 10 years at Pfizer, where she led marketing for Lipitor, a drug intended to lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease and held various other sales and marketing roles.
