Knipper acquires MediMedia Health's sample management lines of business

J. Knipper and Company, Inc., the largest supplier of end-to-end samples management services to the U.S. pharmaceutical industry, announced today that the Company has acquired MediMedia Health's sample management lines of business. These services include direct-to- provider (DTP) sample fulfillment, patient assistance programs and animal health services, as well as call center and regulatory compliance services that accompany these activities. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

"Knipper's acquisition of the MediMedia sample business will further our mission of being the nation's leading samples management services provider," said Jim Knipper, co-founder and CEO of J. Knipper and Company. "We are excited about the opportunity this creates, as adding these services from MediMedia Health enables our customers to leverage the broadest and most diverse library of best practice and sample management standards available in the industry today. By combining MediMedia's innovative engagement models with Knipper's leading sales operations, white space and compliance services, Knipper solidifies its position as the nation's #1 provider of full circle, end-to-end sample-centric solutions."

The dramatic increase in need for DTP samples management and direct-to-consumer (DTC) patient services creates a unique opportunity for the supplier who possesses the most comprehensive set of data. Such data is a wellspring of knowledge that can be used for the purposes of benchmarking and creating a more efficient means of "hyper-targeting." The combined operations of Knipper will now possess that powerful data set. Michael J. Laferrera, President and COO of Knipper, shared his longer-term strategic thoughts on the advantages of the combined data pool: "We look forward to transforming the way the industry views ROI and samples management benchmarking. Through our integration of the new business, Knipper plans on harnessing the knowledge possessed in its data to provide smarter and more productive tools to its customer base, both retrospectively and proactively."

J Knipper and Company's customers—including many of the world's largest and fastest-growing pharmaceutical and biotech organizations—will be able to extend their investments in DTP, DTC, and Patient Assistance programs with access to the industry's most comprehensive pool of sampling solutions. MediMedia's strong customer base—including many of the nation's largest pharmaceutical brands—will have access to new world-class sales operations and services, and will be able to leverage Knipper's leading fulfillment and compliance solutions to transform their end-to-end samples management experience.

Jeff Swearingen of Edgemont Capital Partners, a leading healthcare investment banking firm, acted as exclusive advisor to J. Knipper and Company. Petsky Prunier LLC acted as advisor to MediMedia USA.