With several years ahead of a market promised to an explosion, Novo Nordisk seemed to have all the cards in hand to win. However, in one year, the title lost more than 50% of its value. In the background, a deep strategic questioning, marked by the departure of the Director General and part of the management team. Back on the internal errors that cost Danish champion dearly.
Since the launch of Wegovy in the United States, mid-2021, Novo Nordisk has generated $ 46 billion in net profit. But, arrived in 2024, Eli Lilly established himself as the new leader in prescription, in an American market of nearly 100 million potential patients.
How could the pioneer have been doubled so quickly? A Reuters investigation, based on testimonies from former Novo employees, sheds light on the faults of a poorly calibrated strategy.
Part 1 – A failed launch
The marketing and commercial teams were predicting massive success for Wegovy. But the launch, decided by Doug Langa (manager of the American market), was rushed. Result: insufficient supply of pharmacy and limited health insurance coverage for treatment at $ 1,300.
Many patients, frustrated not to find their dose or unable to assume the cost, turned to pale copies from the masterful preparation. Novo’s first error: misunderstanding its market.
Part 2 – An underestimated request
Wegovy had proven its effectiveness (average loss of 16% of weight). However, during a conference in 2019, Novo simply provided a doubling of the income related to obesity by 2025.
Reality has greatly exceeded forecasts: sales increased from 5.7 to 65.1 billion dollars in 2024. But Novo remained locked up in its initial plans, ignoring the signals of the field. Its export strategy, copied from that of the United States, also capped volumes. Too cautious, the group missed the opportunity to establish its domination.
Part 3 – A poorly thought -out price policy
New misstep of the former European first capitalization, the price. While the two competitors sold their respective drugs against diabetes at around $ 1,000, Novo marketed Wegovy, however based on the same molecule, at $ 1,300.
The group refused to grant substantial discounts to PBM (pharmaceutical services managers), who negotiate on behalf of insurers and employers. This lack of pricing flexibility has penalized its access to the market.
Eli Lilly, an opportunistic and agile competitor
In 2024, Eli Lilly launched Zepbound, his medication against obesity.
The American arrives on a frustrated market. The group was able to take advantage of a market not yet acquired at the cause of Novo Nordisk despite more than two years in advance.
The group is between a solid supply, which allows it rapid sales to direct pharmacies to consumers, and promotions to consumers via its Lillydirect platform.
Above all, Eli Lilly breaks prices. The treatment is offered at the Mounjaro rate, with discounts up to $ 349 for uninsured patients.
Novo awaits March 2025 to launch its own online pharmacy and reduce its price to $ 500 for unusual or under-assured patients.
A symptomatic quote from a BMO Capital Markets analyst summarizes the strategic gap between the two groups: “Whenever we mentioned a creative or daring idea in Eli Lilly, Jorgensen (ex-CEO of Novo) replied: ‘I don’t know if we can do that.'”
Useful recall of the consumption mode of this drug: it is injected once a week via doses of 2.5 to 15 mg. Consumption gradually increases.
It is difficult to establish a price established for each dose as the two actors lead a tough marketing battle on this market.
