SAN DIEGO, Jan. 25, 2001 (PRIMEZONE) -- Women First HealthCare, Inc. (Nasdaq:WFHC) today announced that an in-depth interview with chairman, president and CEO Edward F. Calesa has been published in The Wall Street Transcript. The interview is part of a special January 22, 2001 Pharmaceuticals issue featuring six leading analysts and top management from seventeen sector firms.
During the interview - which can be accessed online at womenfirst.com (news releases) and http://www.twst.com/ceos.htm - Mr. Calesa discusses the specialty pharmaceutical company's market and growth capabilities and opportunities, goal of profitability in 2001, strategic pharmaceutical partnerships, key products, and marketplace receptivity.
"Our mission is to help midlife women make informed choices and to provide pharmaceutical products-the Company's primary focus-and lifestyle products to meet those needs. All women entering midlife," explains Mr. Calesa, "will experience fluctuating, and then declining, hormone levels, which set off a range of needs for our products. These include the need for estrogen replenishment, where every woman is a potential user, and a range of other products offered by Women First. Our approach and our products are well received by clinicians and by women, who want balanced information, choice and individualization."
Mr. Calesa also addresses the Company's focus on building the business and continuing to build a platform for accelerating and sustainable growth. "We see our march toward profitability as one of incredible turnaround. Beginning in July 2000 we undertook a series of steps to increase shareholder value. We have built a new management team, reduced expenses to better align costs with revenues, renegotiated contracts with Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical and Laboratoires Fournier S.A., and focused the selling message and product options offered by our sales force. These changes combined to produce a sizable reduction in losses for the third quarter of 2000 compared with previous quarters. The process of aligning costs with revenues is continuing and is something we all take very seriously. It is our goal to be profitable this year."
Looking ahead, Mr. Calesa notes with pride Women First's acquisition of ORTHO-EST(R) Tablets from Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical, Inc. and the Company's managed care contract with the nation's largest hospital supply company to expand sales of Esclim(TM). "Our growth strategy for 2001 and forward includes the acquisition and licensing of additional prescription products where we can control the marketing. Over the next twelve months we're going to continue to strive toward profitability by aggressively promoting our pharmaceutical products and more closely aligning costs and revenues on the consumer side of the business."
About Women First HealthCare, Inc.
Founded in 1996, Women First HealthCare, Inc. is a San Diego-based specialty pharmaceutical company. Its mission is to help midlife women make informed choices regarding their health care needs and to provide pharmaceutical and science-based lifestyle product solutions to meet those needs. Women First is specifically targeted to women age 40+ and their clinicians. The Company's Pharmaceutical Division, which includes a nationwide team of experienced sales specialists, contacts primarily OB/GYNs and Nurse Practitioners with estrogen replenishment options-both oral and patch. The Consumer Business is responsible for Daily Difference(TM) dietary supplements, developed in consultation with Tufts University School of Nutrition Science and Policy, and the Company's line of self-care products available through its As We Change(R) national mail order catalog and Internet retailer, www.aswechange.com. Trialogue(TM), the Corporate Marketing Division, is responsible for providing access to Women First's network of opinion leaders and clinicians through strategic marketing programs for sale to major pharmaceutical companies. The Company's business strategy includes the acquisition and licensing of additional prescription products that support its mission. Further information about Women First can be found online at www.womenfirst.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This press release may contain certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements are subject to various risks, and Women First HealthCare, Inc. cautions you that any forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance. Women First HealthCare, Inc. disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially due to a number of factors, including (i) changes in our contractual relationships with Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical and Bristol-Myers Squibb, (ii) our ability to obtain additional financing for our future capital needs, and (iii) additional factors set forth in the Company's Securities and Exchange Commission filings including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 1999 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2000.
News releases from Women First HealthCare, Inc. are available at no charge on Women First's Web site at www.womenfirst.com.