PHSE, LEADER IN TEMPERATURE-CONTROLLED PHARMACEUTICAL LOGISTICS, ACQUIRES TEK FREIGHT, A BRITISH COMPANY ACTIVE IN TRANSPORT BY ROAD OF PHARMA AND BIOLOGICAL SAMPLES

PHSE, CONTROLLED BY EDDY DE VITA AND PARTICIPATED BY NB AURORA, STRENGTHENS ITS PRESENCE IN THE UK MARKET

Milan, 23 March 2021 – PHSE, leading company in pharmaceutical logistics controlled by entrepreneur Eddy De Vita and participated by NB Aurora – which indirectly holds a 30.8% stake – in addition to the three founding partners, announces that it has acquired the control of TEK Freight, a leading company in the transport by road of drugs and biological samples from UK to Europe and vice versa.

Thanks to the integration with TEK Freight, PHSE will strengthen its presence across the Channel, increasing its customer base and its capabilities outside of Italy. This is the first acquisition following the co-investment agreement reached between entrepreneur Eddy De Vita and NB Aurora in December 2019 to take over the control of the company, finalized in March 2020, with the aim of accelerating its growth path, including by expanding the international platform of PHSE, which is already present abroad with three locations, New York, London/Heathrow and Singapore.

With a market share of about 50% in Italy and over 5000 shipments managed daily, PHSE is today a leader in the transport and distribution of hospital and home care pharmaceutical products at controlled temperatures. Internationally, PHSE is one of the few providers specializing exclusively in the biopharma segment and in the management of shipments (by air, land and sea) of pharmaceutical products and clinical trials in support of clinical research, at any temperature required. PHSE, which today has more than 300 employees, 13 own branches with GDP warehouses in Italy and a proprietary fleet of more than 300 new generation vehicles, has recorded significant growth in 2020, also driven by the strong development of the homecare channel, necessary to ensure therapeutic continuity to those many patients unable to access hospital facilities due to the ongoing pandemic.

PHSE’s development path, which is proceeding apace in a sector that has never before proved to be so essential, finds an important lever in its partnership with NB Aurora, which provides financial and strategic support to the entrepreneurs of the companies in its portfolio, which have proved to be particularly resilient to the crisis generated by the pandemic, thanks in part to ongoing investments to enhance their technological capabilities and strengthen management teams.

Eddy De Vita, Chairman of PHSE, commented: “The agreement reached with TEK Freight strengthens our presence in the UK and represents an important step in PHSE international business development plan. The acquisition consolidates the global positioning of the company as the only Italian company specialized in the transport of drugs at controlled temperature, global forwarding, clinical trials and radiopharmaceuticals.

In the last year PHSE has continued its development path started by the founding partners who still remain in the company with an operational role, through a plan of investments in quality, technological innovation, fleet expansion and the strengthening of the last mile distribution network in Italy, also thanks to the opening of the new logistics hub in Lodi. In parallel, we are working at full pace to expand our presence abroad. Today we have an interesting pipeline of possible acquisitions in Europe, Asia, America and we are simultaneously working to extend the offer of value-added services in Italy. Despite the difficult economic environment, in 2020 the company grew by about 12%, and aims for the current year to reach a turnover of about 40 million euros. Our company has been available since the beginning to support the National Health System in the distribution of anti-Covid vaccines thanks to an already consolidated operating model that is characterized by punctuality, active cold chain, environmental sustainability, quality and traceability”.

Patrizia Micucci, Managing Director of NB Aurora, added: “We strongly believe in PHSE business model, which is based on a total autonomy in the management of transport, thanks to the support of direct workforce and proprietary vehicles. These are the characteristics that make PHSE a unique reality in the international scenario of pharmaceutical logistics, which today is facing new historical challenges, such as the transport and distribution of anti-Covid vaccines and the strong increase in home delivery of hospital therapies, both fields in which PHSE has the potential to establish itself globally as a reference point in the sector. NB Aurora is working with the company’s shareholders and managers in the process of decisive growth it has undertaken in recent months, supporting them in the strategic decisions they are called upon to make.”

Fonte: IL SOLE 24 ORE