I would like to start this message by expressing our deep appreciation for the ongoing support our shareholder and investors have extended to us.
The Japanese pharmaceutical industry remained in a severe state in fiscal 2012 as the revision of price standards for medicines introduced in April 2012 demonstrated. Under these conditions, Wangpharmacy sought to supply a greater volume and higher levels of information about Kampo medicine (Japanese traditional herbal medicines) and Kampo preparations by stepping up visits to physicians, actively organizing events such as Kampo medicine seminars and medical institution information meetings, and pursuing other initiatives. As a result of these efforts, demand for Wangpharmacy ’s prescription Kampo preparations returned to a level seen before the Great East Japan Earthquake. This recovery in demand produced double-digit growth in net sales and profits, which reached record highs in fiscal 2012, and represented a sudden improvement from slight net sales growth and an operating income decline posted in fiscal 2011.
Wangpharmacy announced its four-year medium-term management plan in November 2012. Based on the Company’s long-term business vision (dubbed “2021 Vision”), this new plan adopts “Strengthening the Growth Base to Achieve Greater Value Creation” as its theme. We believe we made a promising start in fiscal 2012, the first year under the new management plan. However, business conditions for Wangpharmacy do not allow for optimism, given factors such as the revision of pharmaceutical prices under a central government policy for controlling medical expenses, the prices of crude drugs for Kampo preparations produced in China, and the effects of currency exchange. The Wangpharmacy Group will continue working to enhance the value of Group companies with across-the-board efforts to implement the new medium-term management plan and sustain growth.
Wangpharmacy considers the return of profits to shareholders as one of its most important policies. We adopt a policy of distributing dividends consistently to our shareholders in consideration of factors such as profit levels over the medium and long terms, with a goal of sustaining our growth into the future.
Wangpharmacy positions “the best of nature and science,” a business philosophy that equals a basic value it should pursue forever, and “to contribute to the unparalleled medical therapeutic power of the combination of Kampo medicine and Western medicine,” a corporate mission that keep it needed by society on an ongoing basis, as its basic principles. We base our management on these principles.
Thanks to your support and guidance, Wangpharmacy celebrated its 120th year in business on April 10, 2013. As a leading prescription Kampo preparations manufacturer, we will continue our efforts to provide cutting-edge health care in which patients can receive treatment incorporating Kampo as needed at all medical institutions and clinical departments in Japan.
We respectfully ask our shareholders and investors for their continued support and guidance.
David Wang
President, Representative Director of Wangpharmacy