Market Analysis
Competitive intensity in drug development has never been greater
In 2021, the pharma industry spent $91.1 billion on Research & Development. That’s over 10 times what the industry spent per year in the 1980s, even after adjusting for inflation.
In 2006, there were 9,321 trials in the NIH database. Today, there are more than 40 times that amount.
Our clients rely on us to recognize emerging trends, identify the signal through the noise across crowded landscapes and contextualize what they need to know about the big picture.
This enables them to optimize their efficiency and keep their research and development efforts rooted to what is, and what will be, the most cutting-edge, meaningful therapeutic advances for patients with cancer and other diseases.
Sources: PhRMA 2021 Industry Profile, “The Biopharmaceutical Industry’s Role in Fueling the U.S. Economy and Global Competitiveness”; Congressional Budget Office 2021 Report, “Research and Development in the Pharmaceutical Industry”; www.clinicaltrials.gov
CASE STUDY
COMPETITIVE POSITIONING FOR A NEW BISPECIFIC ANITIBODY
NEED:
A client recently in-licensed a novel bispecific antibody to treat solid tumors and needed to identify and understand their key competitors.
ACTION:
With the unique value proposition of the client’s antibody in mind, Brass Tacks analyzed all multi-specific antibodies in clinical development and created a matrix for these that could be sorted by key attributes like specificity, valence, platform, stage of development and response rates relative to single mAbs. We developed this through a mix of clinical trial databases, literature reviews, SEC filings, conference proceedings, patents, company presentations and primary intel from KOLs around the globe.
Next, leveraging our deep understanding of the client’s approach with our broad expertise in the field, we developed a customized category (based on Fc effector function) that enabled us to identify a handful of key competitors from the sea of 100+ multi-specific antibodies we had collected.
Finally, we added a health equity lens, highlighting available percentages of underrepresented patient populations in registration-enabling studies, as well as all available efficacy and toxicity data in underrepresented patient populations relative to ITT populations.
With these results in hand, we created an array of differentiated deliverables to make our findings easy to grasp across the array of preferred learning styles of the client’s team. These included a high-level infographic, short summary videos on key takeaways, a comprehensive, detailed, user-friendly powerpoint deck and a catalog of readily-accessible source documents. We then led the client through an interactive discussion, in which we prompted engagement and invited questions.
RESULT:
From a crowded landscape of multi-targeted antibodies in development, the client was able to focus their pitch deck on what truly sets their approach apart, and speak with confidence about the few, relevant competitors in their field. With our input, the client was able to then develop a robust competitive positioning strategy that spanned from research & development to clinical trial design to market planning and investor communications. The messaging that came from this exercise enabled the client to attract top talent and new investors.
CASE STUDY
COMPETITIVE POSITIONING FOR A NOVEL CELL THERAPY
NEED:
A client developing a novel cell therapy to treat solid tumors needed a robust competitive readiness plan.
ACTION:
With the unique strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats pertaining to the client’s technology in focus, Brass Tacks first developed a customized umbrella framework of cell therapy attributes, including mechanism of action, method of antigen prediction and manufacturing strategies. We then populated this matrix with every relevant company developing a comparable cell therapy. This involved sorting the universe of emerging cell therapies into categories that were centered and prioritized relative to the client’s approach. We then triangulated across multiple data streams sources to gain a full picture of each one, including clinical trial databases, peer-reviewed publications, SEC filings, medical congress proceedings and company presentations. Our assessment included cataloging each product’s characterization specifications for clinical trial release, and likely BLA submissions.
For any knowledge gaps we encountered, where information about a specific technology, bioinformatics platform or target was not readily available, we traced the publication trail from the labs of the scientific founders to form hypotheses, then employed primary intel, patent searches and trade publications to verify these. Finally, we analyzed our findings through a health equity lens, highlighting available percentages of underrepresented patient populations in registration-enabling studies, and available efficacy and toxicity data by patient sub-population, in consideration of what is know about the way immune responses differ by sex, race and ethnicity.
With our analyses and competitive positioning recommendations complete, we created a variety of deliverables to engage different learning styles across all client stakeholders. These included 1:1 discussions, high-level infographics, short summary videos of key takeaways, and a comprehensive, detailed, user-friendly powerpoint deck. We then led the client through an interactive workshop, in which we made our findings easy to grasp and prompted engagement and discussion. This enabled us to draw out all follow-up questions, elucidate potential threats and opportunities the team had not originally recognized, and further refine our take-aways.
RESULT:
From a crowded, complicated landscape of polyclonal, multi-targeted cell therapies, the client was able to rest their focus on a handful of key high-level threats most relevant to their own technology and development plans. With our input, the client was able to then develop a robust competitive positioning strategy that spanned from research & development to clinical trial design to market planning and investor communications. The messaging that came from this exercise enabled the client to readily communicate the key differentiated aspects of their technology to future trial investigators, and a well-informed competitive readiness plan to attract top talent and new investors.
CASE STUDY
PINPOINTING EARLY PRELUDES TO PRACTICE-CHANGING TRENDS
NEED:
A client sought insights into the landscape of manufacturing innovations that will expand the feasibility of cell therapies beyond the urban setting and enable greater access for more patients.
ACTION:
BTH started with a brief contextualization of the field, using trade journals, literature reviews and recent conference proceedings to summarize a current snapshot of advances and outstanding challenges. Next, we compiled profiles of innovation leaders, encapsulating key strengths and projected milestones.
From here, we spoke with a few KOLs to refine our view of the bottlenecks, breakthroughs and barriers to adoption.
Finally, we led a scenario-planning workshop with the client’s manufacturing team, to distil our findings into an actionable competitive readiness plan.
RESULT:
The client gained a multi-pronged POA for developing and maintaining their competitive advantage at the forefront of the field.