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Chain Drugstore Daily Saturday, April 22, 2017 1 8 ASCEND LABORATORIES KEEPS CLEAR FOCUS Ascend Laboratories keeps its eyes on what's most important. For the company, it's manufacturing high quality generic prescription medicines that pharmacists can dispense and patients can take with confidence. But the company doesn't stop there. Its pharmacy customers say what's most important to them is having product available and being a reliable supplier. To meet these demands, Ascend has taken a number of proactive steps such as quali- fying multiple APIs on products and get- ting multiple sites approved for the man- ufacture of high velocity molecules. It also looks to complete real time three year stability studies so it can offer three years of product expiration dating on key items. This allows Ascend to keep higher inventory levels on hand without the fear of product going short dated. This way it can meet the immediate needs of new inquiries in many cases. With two U.S.A. acquisitions now complete, Ascend brings API and fin- ished dose manufacturing into its book of capabilities here. These new facilities complement its two U.S. approved facil- ities in India, both of which are undergoing expansion and a third which is under con- struction. Combined, all these resources drive its very robust pipeline, which consists of more than 50 molecules awaiting FDA approval and more than 100 more under development. It's through investments like these that Ascend will be positioned to be a top-tier supplier now and in the years to come. But still, Ascend does not stop there. With a commitment to both customer and patient satisfaction, Ascend employs a physician Chief Medical Officer who is available 24/7 to answer questions from pharmacists, physicians and even patients directly. Its CMO is a practicing primary care physician who responds prompt- ly to all calls regarding questions on health issues with any Ascend product. Many of the company's customers have met its CMO at various trade events, and he assists hundreds of patients each year, providing needed medical direction or just peace of mind. It's clear to see that Ascend's focus is unobstructed in its aim to bring quality to its pharmacy customers and patients. Ascend has worked hard to gain your trust, and will work harder yet to retain it. Visit Ascend Laboratories at booth #232. FIVE STRATEGIES TO SWEETEN SEASONAL SALES Americans love the seasons and holidays, and they go to great lengths to make cel- ebrations extra special. Often, this means including chocolate and confections that are family favorites, like seasonally fla- vored or colored M&M'S ® Brand Candies. Retailers should take note: candy in seasonal packaging represents 18 percent of overall confectionery sales and 26 per- cent of confectionery sales in the drug channel. (Source: Nielsen) To help maxi- mize category sales potential, Mars Chocolate and Wrigley recommend five winning seasonal strategies: 1. Differentiate and inspire. Winning retailers anchor their seasonal strategies to a creative statement that comes to life in a centrally-located destination in-store, which then is complemented with impulse destinations throughout the store. 2. Overt and highly shoppable mini- destinations. Retailers can inspire greater seasonal participation by offering solu- tions for traditions such as gifting, deco- rating and entertaining. Secondary loca- tions, from the pharmacy to check lanes and everything in between, will drive impulse sales and build bigger baskets. 3. Purposeful executions during "blurred" and "mini" seasons. Shoppers often navigate through multiple seasons at once, such as February's Super Bowl, Mardi Gras and Valentine's Day. Successful retailers emphasize the pri- mary season, with supplemental mer- chandising for mini-seasons. 4. Bold, clear pricing. No matter what the season, bold pricing statements on quality candy are critical to driving store choice, aisle navigation and impulse. Ensure representation of a vari- ety of price points, particularly in gifting. 5. Early and often promotional cal- endar. Candy is relevant throughout sea- sonal periods, yet what shoppers buy changes over the course of time. For example, a shopper may explore the first taste of the season, and later buy for snacking, parties and gift- ing. Seasonal gifting continues to grow, and shoppers seek out gifts with a unique flavor or personal touch. Another trend is seasonal shapes, like new DOVE ® Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs; TWIX ® Hearts, Eggs and Ghosts; and SNICKERS ® Hearts, Eggs, Pumpkins and Trees. Placed by the register, these are ideal grab-and-go snacks. In addition to festive shapes, Mars Chocolate is rolling out new items, including: Halloween 2017: A "Spooky Chocolate Variety Mix" bag filled with 150 pieces; a Chocolate & Sugar Variety Mix Bag with 170 pieces; M&M'S Brand White Pumpkin Pie Candies; and MALTESERS ® FUN SIZE ® in a medium bag. Christmas 2017: CELEBRA- TIONS ® Brand Bottle filled with indi- vidually wrapped miniatures of BOUNTY ® , DOVE, MILKY WAY ® , SNICKERS and TWIX Brands; M&M'S Caramel in the red and green colors of the season; DOVE Brand PROMISES ® Silky Smooth Milk Chocolate Mint Cookie Gifts; and a 4-pack of M&M'S Brand Minis Milk Chocolate Candies in tubes. New items from Wrigley will entice shoppers, including: Halloween 2017: Skittles Cauldron Spooky Spells Book; Skittles Original Mask Book; Variety packs including Trunk or Treat 80-count bag, 315-count Variety Bag and 95-count Variety bag with Skittles Original, Skittles Sour, Starburst Minis and Starburst Halloween Mix. Christmas 2017: Skittles Ugly Sweater Stand Up Pouch; and Skittles and Starburst Holiday Story Books. For more information, visit booths #336- 338, go to www.mars.com, call 800.631.7630 or contact your Mars Chocolate or Wrigley representative. RISING RAISES THE BAR Upon completing its acquisition of the Citron Pharma product line, Rising Pharmaceuticals completes its first step in ushering in a new era. Already an industry leader in mar- keting and distributing of niche generic pharmaceutical products, Rising nearly doubles its product portfolio by adding significant value in 47 commercialized generic drugs and 31 approved and yet- to-be launched products as well as 33 pipeline products, 29 of which Rising will own the ANDA rights to. This sub- stantially improves its current product portfolio and equips the new Rising with additional tools to grow in the future. Citron's affiliate, Lucid Pharma, was also a key part of the product acquisition as a generic pharmaceutical distributor specializing in providing cost-effective products to various agencies of the U.S. Federal government. Lucid has a cus- tomer base that includes the Veterans Administration and the Defense Logistics Agency, and has been awarded 21 contracts with the Federal govern- ment. With this product acquisition, Rising adds to its already robust global network of development and manufacturing part- ners. This enhances its size and stature within the industry. Fully integrating Citron's manufacturing net- work capabilities will enable Rising to create a value chain that drives profitabil- ity and extends affordability to its cus- tomers. Rising is also bringing on the Founder of Citron, Vimal Kavuru, to bring the same vision and management skills to Rising that he used to make Citron one of the fastest growing U.S. generic pharmaceutical companies. With his expertise in strategic planning, prod- uct and business development, and tacti- cal operations, Kavuru assumes a leader- ship role at Rising Pharmaceuticals. His proven history of creating and expanding busi- nesses across various facets of the phar- maceutical industry gives him invaluable experience and insight into the market- place, providing insight to better meet customer needs. With its asset light busi- ness model, a focus on high barrier to entry and niche products, Rising's new leadership will take the company to greater heights moving forward. For more information, visit booth #114, go to www.risingpharma.com, call 201.961.9000 or email info@risingpharma.com. ACTINIUM PHARMACEUTICALS APPOINTS AJIT S. SHETTY, PH.D. TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS Actinium Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a bio- pharmaceutical company developing innovative targeted payload immunother- apeutics for the treatment of advanced cancers, announced that Dr. Ajit Shetty has been appointed to the company's Board of Directors. Dr. Shetty is a phar- maceutical industry executive with 36 years of experience at Johnson & Johnson (J&J) and its subsidiary Janssen. Most recently, Dr. Shetty served as the Head of Enterprise Supply Chain at J&J where he was responsible for the transformation and optimization of J&J's global supply chain. Sandesh Seth, Executive Chairman of Actinium, said, "Dr. Shetty is a highly accomplished pharmaceutical executive with a demonstrated ability to lead and manage growth on a global basis with expertise in supply chain and commercial- ization activities. His plethora of experi- ences, wealth of knowledge and relation- ships gained in his 36 years at Johnson & Johnson will be invaluable to Actinium as we execute on the development of our clin- ical programs. I welcome Dr. Shetty to the Actinium Board and I look forward to working with him and the Actinium team in building an innovative company focused on improving patient outcomes with our novel radioimmunotherapies." For more information, visit www .actiniumpharma.com.