Galenica Aktie

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this Media and Analyst conference call for the Galenica Group. We are very happy that during the spring day, you came here to Zurich to join us here and I also welcome everybody, all the guest, [Technical Difficulty] live stream. My name is Iris Muller, and I'll be your host in the coming hour [Technical Difficulty] today. We will start with the financial results by our CFO and then we will have moderate discussion regarding the strategy and priorities. And there will always be sufficient time for your Q&A here in the room, but also from the live stream of course.

So I would now without further ado pass the floor to you, the CFO, Julian Fiessinger.

Thank you. Thank you, Iris, and also a warm welcome from me to all the guests here in Zurich and all to those taking past via the webcast. We can look back on a successful year 2025. Galenica grew strongly by 5.5%, both in the Logistics and IT segment with 4.8% and especially in the segment Products & Care with a growth rate of 6.8%.

In Logistics and IT, we benefited from the strong market growth and grew in line with the market in terms of value in both pharmacy and the physicians segments. The strong growth in the Products & Care segment is a combination of a strong organic growth and successful expansion. We were able to see organic growth in our market share in the pharmacy segment and also acquired additional attractive locations.

One highlight was certainly in 2025 in September, the acquisition of Labor Team, which accounted for around 1% of the group's overall sales growth. The strong growth also laid the foundation for a positive development in profitability. EBIT rose by a strong 11.3% to CHF 234.8 million in 2025.

And this positive development was supported by positive special factors totaling CHF 6.2 million. These resulted from 2 competition proceedings in which the penalties were significantly lower than originally thought. Overall, Galenica reported a ROS of 5.7% in 2025. Adjusted for one-off factors, the ROS was 5.5%.

The comparables ROS in the Logistics and IT segment remained constant, which we expected given the ongoing conversion of the ERP system in Logistics. Until the project is fully completed, both ERP systems have to operate in parallel, which means that no efficiency gains can yet be realized.

Now when it comes to the Products & Care segments, the return on sales increased from 9.4% to 9.6%, supported by the strong organic growth and the successful acquisition of Labor Team. Let's now take a look at the main drivers of this margin increase. Galenica's operating result is essentially driven by the gross margin and the personnel cost efficiency. And both key figures developed positively last year in 2025.

The gross margin increased by 0.2 percentage points in 2025. In Logistics and IT, the margin increased by 0.1 percentage point, in particular, due to price increases. In Products & Care, the margin fell slightly from 46.5% to 46.2% due to the product mix, in particular, due to the pharmacies. And due to the strong growth, however, the Products & Care segment also had a positive impact on the development of the gross margin at group level.

Now when it comes to personnel costs, efficiency were increased slightly in Products & Care, the personnel cost ratio fell significantly by 0.4%. This was mainly due to the development in the pharmacies, which were able to significantly increase their personnel cost efficiency. Personnel cost efficiency also increased slightly in the Logistics and IT segment despite the ongoing ERP changeover at Galexis in Logistics, part of it comes from the pre-wholesaler Algifor, which has already mastered the ERP changeover and the efficiency potential can now be realized already.

Now as to the adjusted net profit, it rose by 3% to CHF 189 million. The lower growth at the net profit level is due to the financial result in taxes, which are significantly less affected by the one-off special factors in 2025. In the financial sectors, we had some CHF 10 million in one-off income and with the reversal of earn-out obligations and there were -- in terms of taxes, the tax rate was reduced to 14.1%. In 2025, we have a tax rate at a sustainable level of 17.1%.

Investment. We had CHF 61.1 million investments, which were at an exceptionally low level in 2025. This was due in particular to the decrease in investments in the IT developments as a result of the progress made with the ERP projects -- ERP project excuse me. Galenica continues to have a strong balance sheet. Equity decreased slightly compared with the previous year due to the loss in value of the investment in Redcare of CHF 135 million in 2025.

The current share price performance of the investment is also disappointing for us. We do see that the investment in Redcare can be considered a major important element of our strategic partnership with Redcare, and we are convinced that the value of the investment will recover.

Now when it comes to net debt, it increased by CHF 251 million due to the acquisition of Labor Team in September 2025. The debt ratio as at 31 December 2025 was at a factor of 2.3, which is slightly above our target value of the factor 2. Now it was very good to see the development of cash flow. The operating cash flow increased by CHF 30 million to CHF 245.7 million. This growth was driven by the good result, but also by a strict focus on the net working capital.

In negotiations with suppliers, we were able to agree better payment terms in the long term, which eased the burden on net working capital accordingly. After investments, a free cash flow of CHF 188 million remains with -- which a good portion of the acquisitions could be financed even after payment of last year's dividend of CHF 115 million. Given the positive result, the Board of Directors will propose a dividend of CHF 2.50 per share at the General Annual Meeting. That is to say 20% teams more than in the previous year, which corresponds to an increase of 8.7%. The increase in the dividend also reflects the strong cash flow generation and the positive outlook.

Now as to guidance. we are positive about the future. For 2026, Galenica expects sales growth of 5% to 7% and an increase in adjusted EBIT of 6% to 8%. Adjusted for the special factors of 2025 of CHF 6.2 million, this corresponds to a high increase of 9% to 11%. In addition, the adjusted EBIT is now more geared to the operating EBIT. And the costs of the planned closure of Bichsel's production division, which will incur in the first half of 2026 is now reflected in the adjusted EBIT.

Now we've also seen an adjustment of the midterm guidance that we published today. Last year, there were significant changes that were not reflected in the previous midterm guidance, for example, the expected closure of the pharmaceutical production at Bichsel and the acquisition of Labor Team.

And now when it comes to the ERP changeover in logistics, we are now regarding the efficiency gains, we also have a greater visibility now. In the Logistics and IT segment, we expect due to the ongoing ERP project, we expect the hypercare phase and the subsequent reduction of the project organization. So we expect a stable development of the EBIT margin to remain stable until 2027. However, expectations regarding the efficiency potential are really high. We continue to expect an increase in the EBIT margin of up to 2%, which will occur in 2028.

In the Products & Care segment, we will increase on Bichsel's focus on the home care area and the successful integration of Labor team will mean an increase of the EBIT margin of over 10%. And overall, and this is the key element of the midterm guidance, it is decisive that Galenica will achieve an EBIT of CHF 270 million in 2027. However, there are other points that are unchanged compared to the previous midterm guidance. We have the growth assumption in the 2 segments of 3% to 5% per year. That's unchanged. So we are, therefore, still in a very good market environment.

Thank you so much, Julian, for giving us a detailed insight into the financial results. We'll now look at where Galenica stands in implementing our strategy and where upcoming priorities are. We'll do that over 15 minutes in a moderated conversation together with Galenica's CEO. Please join me in welcoming Marc Werner.

Marc, we've heard it. The financial results have been quite pleasing. What is your personal bottom line?

Well, it's a positive one. As Julian said, in 2025, we were consistent in driving our strategic goals and implementing them. And we've continued to strengthen our strong position in the Swiss health care market even further. We also made headway when it comes to transformation and customer centricity, I feel.

And what specifically have been the biggest milestones in the implementation of our strategy?

Well, there are 3 items that I'd like to mention. Now the -- we further strengthened our basic care, both in brick-and-mortar and online. The digitization was developed further and efficiency, and that's a decisive point for us. Our growth strategy was pursued consistently.

If you have a look at pharmacies, if you have a look at logistics or home care, and also expanding our network acquisition of Labor Team and entering the diagnostics market, which was crucial, of course.

Now let's drill down on these 3 topics. Let's start with expanding basic care. Now net 5 locations were added in 2025. In total, there are 381 pharmacies that are part of the Galenica now. Now health and consultancy services are growing. How important is that for further growth?

Crucial, absolutely crucial. Now consulting plus that really an offer that has increased markedly. In total, we carried out 370,000 fee-based health care and consultancy services amongst them 93,000 vaccinations. So the pharmacies are now the port of call for these services.

And we have new cooperation partners that we've concluded cooperations with since the beginning of the year, KPT and Helsana, 2 important health insurance have joined our network. So there's 10 health care insurance that we're working with, and they support us to position pharmacies as the first port of calls.

Now that can be built also by the health insurance. So consultancy plus is that available in all pharmacies already?

Not yet. But by the end of June, we'll offer consultancy plus in all our pharmacies in Amavita and Sun Store and by the end of the year also in Coop Vitality. But we already have fee-based consultancy services as we speak. The consultancy plus will be rolled out to 100% at the end of the year. And the interesting thing is the goods basket.

Our services amount to about CHF 80, 1/3 is consultancy and 2/3 other products. So that means that every consultancy, of course, comes with selling a product to kick off the therapy that goes with it. That's an important point.

Now the second important point is that starting in 2027, vaccinations will be built via health insurers, and that's, of course, an important boost for our pharmacies. Now let's remain with pharmacies.

Now let's remain with pharmacies. They have done quite well. You've done quite well in the digital realm. What can we expect in the future?

Now the omnichannel strategy was investments to [indiscernible] that were launched in 2020, and we're now reaping the awards. Several elements that go with that. For instance, take Click & Collect. So our customers will get their information online, but they might even buy it, but they pick up the product in the pharmacy. That's important for us. That's taken off nicely, and it's a wonderful holistic process for the sake of our customers.

What I'm quite happy with it is our prescription manager that we launched in 2025. So the management of the prescription is really done well and it meets with an enormous demand. So we've seen a significant growth base because it makes the customer lives easier as they have more than one prescription, a permanent prescription that need to be filled. So that customer retention will be boosted and customer satisfaction will be boosted apart from that.

So I have a look at the online market. We have the Amavita strategies that have communicated that show that our omnichannel online network that will be continued further. So for the digital drugstore and OTC assortment.

Now let's have a look at the regulatory environment. Maybe OTC liberalization has been a topic for years. What are the latest forecasts and how is Galenica prepared?

Well, we do not expect liberalization before 2030 or even 2031, specifically given the current political discussion in Switzerland that will warehouse. So the discussion has not been launched to that bigger churn. But it's quite important to see what that entails.

Now OTC legalization would affect all the OTC products that are not part of the specialties list of the federal government, which amounts to about 13% of our Galenica pharmacy sale. But there are 2 things that we need to take into account and namely, it's a topic that keeps on recurring. And now in countries that have undergone liberalization, Germany and Sweden, so they are far ahead of us. If that liberalization comes, that takes a bit of time. So customers do things online. So the market shift will be quite slow from brick-and-mortar to online channels.

Now why did we start that online strategy 5 years ago? That was with a nod to that. And that's my second aspect. We are leading our customers to the digital channels. That's why we have been advocating said liberalization because we're convinced that we are prepared.

Price pressure is already high and it's right.

Yes, you're right. The decline in gross margin in pharmacies is a logical factor. The main element comes from the pharmacies really. It's really about the decline in the gross margin, which is the logical consequence of the shift in the product mix towards a higher proportion of prescription medicines, including GLP-1 weight loss products, for example, and they will water down margins.

However, this is not necessarily just the negative development. It's also positive. In the pharmacies, it makes it quite clear. They are less dependent on seasonal fluctuations. Ultimately, what we also have to see is -- and that's the point, we have to take a look at the absolute margin with a positive margin and in 2025, we saw that despite a gross margin -- we had a gross margin increase despite certain levels that were not as good.

Galenica, Julian, you mentioned is constantly working to improve cost efficiency. Is there a potential for further efficiency gains, Julian?

Yes, of course, there's always potential for efficiency improvements in all business sectors. We are in a scaling business in logistics, pharmacies, product and diagnostics business, with turning increases in turnover, and that's what we assume. It also means that there's potential for further efficiency gains. There's innovation, new technologies, also by using artificial intelligence, that's where the potential for efficiency gains comes from. The main efficiency potential certainly lies in wholesale and logistics and after the successful ERP system project, we expect there to be the potential for growth.

Well, let's take a look at that keyword, Marc, we had a milestone with the SAP change in Ecublens. What about the project? What are the next steps?

Well, like all major SAP conversions, it's always a big project, and it's a lot of work. We are very proud that we were able to close that project and finalize it and that we have a wonderful automation degree of more than 70% at Lausanne-Ecublens at that side. What we had to learn is that this is not IT project. It's business projects that we're talking about, change projects really, where the stuff have to be taken along because a lot of stuff have to contribute. It's about the work processes that very often are focused on paperwork, and now they go in the direction of automation, paperless offers, and we really had to take along our staff. It's really a transformation journey say we will do that also need a Niederbipp when we switch to SAP.

And we took the lessons learned from the past and we can built upon our knowledge from the flagship site Niederbipp and also certainly make headway there.

Julian, he also mentioned the artificial intelligent part that's also an efficiency driver. And the ERP changeover, that certainly also the basis to use artificial intelligence.

What about Galenica and AI and automation?

Well, we see that AI readiness is very important, and it has proven to be that case over the past year. We need strong processes. That serves as the basis so that afterwards, we can even optimize further AI processes, make it more efficient, be it an article, in the warehouse and capacity planning wherever. The basis is good digital processes, and we see that also in other areas in marketing in the pharmacies where these processes. Our digital is to a very strong degree, and depending on that, the processes can even be made more efficient via AI and the drivers that we use.

I think we are in a good position. We have a good team available. But again, we must make sure that AI is not just a keyword, but we want to be conscious. Where does it make sense to invest? Where can efficiency be gained not just because there is AI on the label. We say we want to do it.

Then further digitization, it also means further investment. Julian, you mentioned cash flow 2025 in a high level. That also came about because we invested less than earlier. And this low investment volume, is it a sustainable one?

Well, yes, the investment volume in '25 -- with those CHF 61 million was at a low level. Certainly, we -- the investment volume will be higher in the next 2 years that also depends upon the headquarters in Bern, the head office renovation, there is a core building and we will remodel it and there's something coming up in the coming 2 years. So we have an investment volume in mind of CHF 80 million to CHF 90 million, which we already communicated with the -- following the acquisition of Labor -- Labor Team.

Let's continue with the expansion of the network. As you said at the beginning, Marc, diagnostics business was a major milestone. What about Labor Team and Galenica, do -- will they create an added value together?

Well, what is important? And when we did the acquisition, we felt very clearly when we are on site, it fits in strategically and culturally, they really fit in into our network. We feel that when we work together, the collaboration is great, and we also see it on the customer side.

In the first phase, we have to focus on the medical doctors. And Labor Team makes sure that we have a broader range of options. We have a better, more intelligent networking going on. So the second stage, and that's really consciously the second stage -- phase is the innovation in our pharmacies. But first of all, we want to focus on the medical doctor side.

And in addition to this expansion, there's also a focusing on the network 3 weeks ago, we communicated that Galenica intends to close production at Galenica, Marc, can you explain the reasons for this?

Well, we acquired Bichsel in 2019. primarily to really focus on the home care sector. And the home care sector has really seen a very positive development and good growth. It makes up some 2/3 of Bichsel's business. The pharmaceutical production, on the other hand, was not profitable. The existing production facilities, we took a look at them, we did not find a way in which to make sure that production facilities can be sustainable in the long run. And that's why we had to take this decision.

Home care, as you mentioned, will continue. And last year, there was also a modification life stage and home care Bichsel, they really focus on that market segment, there is some additional growth plan. What is the plan?

Well, Bichsel home care, the sales organization where they have a lot of know-how in clinical nutrition, and we combine that with live stage solutions because we felt there's a lot of potential, the customer groups. That is to say the on-site -- the out-of-hospital care organizations, they really function well. We've seen that. The home care organizations under one roof, they can be much more stringent in their market drive.

Let's stay with another question about products and care, namely products and brands. What about the development there? Julian?

Well, in products and brands, we have a strong strategic priority. In the past 6 years, we've seen strong growth in this area. And in this period, sales were doubling in the area. Growth is currently -- we've seen an artificially slow down procedure due to the regulatory change in the EU and the high level of bridging stock, but we also see that we have an attractive and high-margin profile there. So there's a lot of potential.

So this concludes the content part. Last question, Julian 2025 was a very successful year from a financial point of view. What about the horizon for 2026?

As I've said, we are positive when it comes to our outlook for 2026. We are in an attractive market environment. We focus on the strategic goals. They focus on sustainable, profitable growth. And that is also reflected in our guidance.

And the last question to you, Marc, the outlook -- what is the focus 2026? And what about the strategic milestones?

Our focus, our strategy is clear and unchanged. We have a clear strategy. We want to focus on the Galenica story that we were successful in the past, and we continue with it. Labor Team is a good example. It shows how flexible strategy is how we can develop the network within the strategy. We want to strengthen our market position in all the areas. We want to be the clear number #1 or #2 in the Labor Team part, maybe not quite yet, but clearly, we do not want to keep #4. We want to make sure that we are among the top 3 players and we won the bronze medal really.

So we want to create value added for our partners. It starts with our staff. We want to create wonderful job environment. So because we can attain or retain good staff that also guarantees market success. We want to make sure that the partnerships, the customers gain value. And we want to make sure that Galenica creates growth for the society for our country. We have a wonderful country. And in the end of the day, we also want to create shareholder value. That's our drive. That's what we stand for.

Thank you. Thank you, Marc. Thank you, Julian, for this talk. So now we come to the questions in the room. So if you could wait.

So please make sure that you wait for the microphone to come your way, so that everybody may hear you. And for everybody on the call, if you want to ask a question, you can either do that in the chats or press request to speak, and then you'll be forward to the Zoom call and can ask your questions. So let's get started with the questions here in the room.

I'm with Zürcher Kantonal, but 2 questions that I have for you. First, on personnel cost efficiency. You mentioned that, that was increased massively above all pharmacies. I think that is quite impressive that the figures went up and then the cost efficiency. So how much of the leeway do you still have? And maybe you have some example, what is possible for 2026? Do you expect a lower growth of personal vis-a-vis sales?

Then my second question on Bichsel and on closing at Bern. Now Galenica stands for stability for me and also security and safety in health care. Now as an outsider, I've always felt that Bichsel was relevant for infusion IV topics that are relevant in a natural disaster scenario, say, for our country. Now before you took the decision to close down, did you talk to the government about whether there could be subsidies in the future? So that's the question from an outsider.

Now in the context, how would you analyze the situation for Switzerland? Is there enough capacity?

Would you like to take on the first part?

Well, thank you for your question, personnel costs. Efficiency in pharmacies is a huge topic. You have to see it in a holistic way. On the one hand, sales growth that is driven by more expensive prescription on drugs that, of course, require less consultancy and that's where part of the personnel cost efficiency comes like quite apart from that, one of our talks -- focal points is that we remain fit and efficient when it comes to personnel costs. And that will remain a focal point for the coming year. So of course, we're trying to be efficient at all times.

And now the FTI increase that is a holistic one, but that results from IT because there were external consultancy costs that we've internalized because that's more cost efficient in the long run. Now on your second part, thank you so much for that question. Now we -- just to make that clear, we announced we were going to close down that part, so the question is no, we didn't talk to the government or to the authorities before and also for confidentiality reason, but we now are in a process where we're talking to everyone, we've announced the closing down, and we're discussing that with all kinds of stakeholders with personnel with works council, what have you. So that's the phase that we're in. And what lies in the future, we'll see.

Now security or supply. That was one of the prime topics and we talked about that on the Board and with the administration because that was a clear cut challenge. Bichsel today has about 40 customers, and there are about 250 hospitals. So you can buy product sales where, of course, in part, a broad upstream.

In the case of crisis or emergency, normally, we wouldn't have a problem. But in crisis times, you have to see that in Switzerland, we are introducing products for the Swiss market it's an illusion to believe that we can go a long. So it would be an illusion to believe that there'd be government subsidies for that.

I believe we had that discussion during the pandemic where everybody said, we have to produce everything in Switzerland, but nothing much has happened. But there is a certain consequence now these supply chains are global. They were so in the past, they will remain global in the future. But we really looked into that intensively. And we are of the clear opinion that there will not be a shortage of supply in Switzerland when we closed down Bichsel.

All right. So more questions here in the front, please.

I'm with UBS. Two questions, if I may. Step up in debt coverage, so that's the upper end of your range of plus minus 2. So what's the potential to improve that? And as you said, you want to get the brands in the lab market. How are you going to do that organically, inorganically, what do you think?

Would you go for the first one?

Now when it comes to debt ratio, you're correct, that is a factor of 2.3 right now. And our target value is factor 2. Now we are temporarily higher and that doesn't because we have a strong cash flow generation, where we have potential far-reaching measures to really drive debt ratio down. We continue to believe that in our midrange guidance up until 2027 will end up at the [ Factor II ]. Of course, that hinges on the option of future acquisition that takes me to the second point.

Yes, we are quite well known for our competence that we manage organic growth, but we also have clearcut goal when it comes to additional inorganic growth. That's the exact mix that makes Galenica and that is something that we are also going to see in the lab business. So we want to grow. And so what we estimate is our own efforts or whether it's logistics, diagnostics, we intend to grow. But quite obviously, we keep our appeal. If we find an exciting target that fits nicely culturally also, then we are going to drive growth in that respect too.

We come to the next question here in the room. The microphone is coming. [indiscernible]

Very briefly a question, the associated investment of CHF 2.4 million investment. What about it in concrete terms? Can you comment on that? And then the amortization in Labor Team, what about 2026, what do you expect there? And then the logistics and IT, the 1.7% until 2027, which will remain at 1.7% until 2027 and then 2% in 2028. So Niederbipp will be -- really have made some headway in 2029. Why not have a positive effect in 2027? And do I have to say 1.7% in 2027 and in 2028, almost 2%. I don't quite understand that.

Thank you for that question. The loss in the context of the value shift towards associated companies. Well, that really has to take a look at step acquisition with Puravita, we take a look at future oriented businesses and then take a look at possible potential acquisitions later on complete acquisitions. And the majority share was -- we were able to get the majority share. And then there was a price adjustment from -- to that CHF 2.4 million.

And -- when it comes to the adjusted EBIT and the operating value added and the operative performance of Galenica, these step acquisitions really are typical for us. That's why we did them. Another item was the expected amortization from Labor Team acquisition.

To be quite honest, I'm not too much here what that really means. In the adjusted EBIT, this amortization was muted rely to make sure that the operating performance was better presentable. In 2025, we had that amortization. The PPA has not really been finalized so far, and it will be finalized regarding 2026 semester.

In terms of logistics and IT, it is quite correct. Until the efficiency gains can be realized, it will take a little longer. Originally, we were a little more ambitious from the get-go. It's always difficult to assume. But in Ecublens, we've seen that the hypercare phase has to be considered, and there's also an after go live. There has to be the 2 ERP systems in parallel, and that will continue to operate like that until 2027. So we're a little more well, hesitant regarding hazard efficiency gains. Of course, we hope that we can realize some of these efficiency gains in 2026, but the full potential of efficiency will certainly be realized in 2028.

Okay. Are there any other questions from the room here, second row, middle.

ZKB, Patrick. What about the competitive situation in pharmacies? And I'm talking about the drugstores in Germany or the Niederbipp want to also work in Switzerland, the German pharmacy that is? And the second question is regarding Redcare. We -- you mentioned the annual result, and there was some drop, why do you think that this will go in the opposite direction again?

Well, in the pharmacy sector -- thank you. No, it was really good. We are in a good position. We have a great job done in this area, and I believe that we will continue to do so. Competition is good. They're German competitors, they want to be active in Switzerland. But we've seen that there are strong competitors. [indiscernible] also strong competitors. That's not surprising. Julian also mentioned it briefly earlier.

Our share in the Rx area has also improved in the pharmacies despite the competitive environment, the 2 partners in the market, they are really in the drugstore area, of course, there are some strong competition, but not since yesterday, but for quite some time already.

And it will also continue in the future. In the pharmacy business, we think we are in a good position. We have a good footprint in Switzerland. We are always on the top shelf really also in inorganic growth -- organic growth. The growth gains will be continuing, I think.

Redcare. Well, Redcare, we still believe that the investment will be profitable in the end. We see it in the collaboration with the Board of Directors and MediService, we have good cooperation. We can learn a lot from Redcare also from the experiences drawn from Germany when it comes to the e-prescription introduction, and you were really a pioneer there. And we believe they have the right strategy. They were not really confused when it comes to the focus, we are really convinced of the joint venture, and we think that the investment will recover. What is clear, and we knew it from get-go, there's a high volatility range that we also expected.

Now we are hit high by the development certainly, but we see that this will also develop in a different direction. What we can say very clearly in all the countries where you are active, you are clearly the #1. They go into markets and when short period of time, they are the #1 in the pharmacy sector. So we are really deeply convinced. Of course, okay, they are in a negative phase right now. But in the long term, we believe that the market position will prevail. In Germany, Austria, Italy, France, they are everywhere and they are very strong.

Well, let's remain in the room. But for those in the live stream, you can already announce the questions and maybe precision. First, you click on the live call button under the live image and then you click on request to speak. There's a button an extra button and then you can join. So you have to click join at the very end. And I hope that this will work. You can announce questions. But for the time being, we remain in the room. There is one further request. A question to Redcare. There are different changes in the Board, 3 people left the Board. The 3 came now and joined them. Were you also questioned -- would you like to join?

No, no, and we don't want to be on or they either.

I'm with Bauerfeind, Galenica, when it comes to product and brands, you're opting for attractive margins. In how far a parallel imports versus security of supply are decisive for you?

When it comes to products and care, you mean products and brands? Well, we have our own product there and in our sourcing strategy. Of course, we have manufacturers from the EU in order to have a well-balanced mix so that's a benign production environment for us that doesn't have to do with our parallel imports. It's our own products that are being manufactured there or am I misunderstanding your question.

Would you please wait for the microphone so that everybody may hear you.

Now I mean the brands that you buy from company. Do you intend to parallelly import them to have a nicer margin and not use a Swiss manufacturer and that opposed to security of supply, that, of course, what companies will be able to provide.

Well, I would say we have a reasonable mix when it comes to negotiations. Quite obviously, we have strong Swiss partners. We've worked with for years and years and we have mutual respect and cooperation. But of course, there is a limit to everything. And we're discussing what is there in the offer of our partners. And once in a while, we also have the direct imports. But still, we want to keep our partners in Switzerland and have good business with them. But again, it's -- at the end of the day, it's about a good deal.

And there was a question in the front. AVT, if I'm not mistaken. Well, that's a political question, Well, because we keep on having that discussion about the increase in health care costs. Will that slow down your growth in the long run? Or is the pharmacy means to an end and we could help drive an costs?

Well, the cost pressure will remain with us. The discussion will remain with us have been like that for and it will remain. It's 11% of the GDP today is in health care. So whether that's a lot or whether that's little, well, that's discussion for the society really. How much are you willing to invest in health care. So 27% of GDP are invested in social affairs. So what you can reach with those 11%. If you have a look at that, that's an enormous societal because we have a quality of life, that is enormous.

The average age in Switzerland is quite high that you can reach is quite high. And how often people are available for the labor market and not all of these are societal success that are not talked about as much. So we have 400,000 staff in health care. They're doing an excellent job every single day so that people in the country get healthy or are healthy.

Now when it comes to politicians, it's not always a fear of that you would view healthcare as a cost factor, but they failed to see that 400,000 people work usually not a top salary with a lot of working hours and a lot of effort that they have to put in. So politicians should think about that.

Now the pressure will continue, as I said, but we're living with that. It's part of our business. Of course, that's a cost -- pressure on the costs for drugs, what have you, that pressure will remain with the certain developments quite a lot of drugs that have not been there in Switzerland for several reasons. But we have to deal with that. We are 9 million people in Switzerland. And if prices develop, where it's no longer profitable for large-scale corporations. We'll have to see the effects of that. We have Swissmedic, we have 3 languages. It's a small market for big pharma. We will have to remain attractive so that they bring their products to Switzerland or else the patients in Switzerland will pay the price and that shouldn't happen.

So we should have a balance between price pressure but also security of supply and the quality of life for the people in Switzerland.

All right. Are there any more questions in the room or else would switch over to the web stream. Let me repeat clicks the 3 times, first live call then request to speak. And then join, and you may ask your question or you ask a question in writing on the chat. So my question to my colleagues, in charge of the chat. Are there any questions from the chat or the webcast. Well, we have quite a few questions from chat, but none in the call, but let's wait for one minute maybe.

Let's start with the chat possibly. Now let's start with the chat. Jan Koch, Deutsche Bank.

Now it's about the Diagnostics business. Can you give me the expected price reductions in that business and the quantifiable influence on income in 2026 and 2027? Question 2, Bichsel. Are you expecting never take results or effects on your home care business? Or are there competitors who offer pharmaceutical production and home care. And third, the GLP-1 antagonists for 2025, what are your expectations for 2026? And when would you expect a saturation of the market? Well, Redcare regarding the positive outlook on Redcare pharmacies, are you open to increase your shares that you have currently?

Thank you for the questions. Now as to the diagnostics business, price reductions expected as you mentioned. In 2026, we have that revision taken and the impact for Galenica will be a neutral one. That is also reflected in our guidance. Now as to the future, the revision of the analysis is a project of the Federal Office of Public Health. We do not know about the result of the revision. We do not expect any changes for 2026, 2027. So this is also reflected in our guidance.

Now as to Bichsel, well, we do not see a negative impact. The synergies between home care and pharmaceutical production was 0. So these are 2 different business segments. We do not see an influence and no changes in the competitive situation. I'm sorry, I wanted to look in the camera really.

Well, GLP-1, here, the growth drivers we assume for 2026, GLP-1 will be growth factors, drivers. And apart from that, I do not want to do any market prognosis when it comes to GLP-1 weight loss products. We assume that there is a similar growth dynamic in the coming years, that's to say growth rates of 3% to 5% in both segments.

Innovation. The market is still on the get-go, there will be new products, there will be pills that can be swallowed. There will be generic medication. So the situation will differ, and I agree with Julian, the market will not grow as quickly. And then the last question, Redcare. 10% we said that the 10% we hold a little more because there was a dilution regarding information program. We know it's a major element in the strategic partnership. However, we do not want to increase the 10% stake. We want to keep our 10%.

There is another question. Yes. The next one is from UBS Sebastian Vogel.

There are 3 questions. The first one, the net working capital. And then the question whether the ambition for 2026 is a headwind or a tailwind? Another question refers to Bichsel and EBIT guidance 2026. The question is, why do you not include Bichsel, last year, the 6 million tailwind were included? And the third question refers to the EBIT or the adjusted EBIT. And the question is, will it not even be more difficult to read the adjusted EBIT because other elements have also been included in it?

Thank you for those questions. First, net working capital. We believe that last year -- over the last years, and we think that this is a very positive development, we had negotiations with the suppliers on the supplier side. And agreed on better payment terms. Of course, we try to continue to negotiate well, but we think that this is a sustainable level that we've reached so far. To that degree, the net working capital will really be seen as a sustainable one going forward.

When it comes to Bichsel and the adjusted EBIT, that's a good point. And that was the core issue when we thought about the adjusted EBIT and when we revise the definitions. We want to have an adjusted EBIT that is testament to the operative performance of Galenica. And in the past, there were 2 elements that were a little a distortion from accountability point of view. And now the performance, the reliability were a little reduced. As I've said, the changes of the values regarding the equity participation that did not really reflect the real situation. And then the amortization of Labor Team, which was a virtual one. It didn't have anything to do with real value performance.

And the third aspect refers to Bichsel and the effects from the intention of the production site closure. In 2023, we had the situation with the MediService. That is to say, if you give up on business areas that they were listed separately. We did not have that in Bichsel because it's not that important. We do not have that in the annual report as a separate issue or item, so we just want to have an increased reliability regarding the operating losses, and we just excluded them then. And the CHF 6 million tailwind in 2025, you've mentioned them from the competitive proceedings. And it's really clear, and we were very transparent here.

One item. These expenses had been considered in the operating EBIT and listed separately but we will not start to go into every one-off item, one by one and separately mention them. We have a clear separation, the adjusted EBIT with the 5 elements that are adjusted. Accordingly, there will be one-offs apart from that, but we will separately mention them, and they are included in the adjusted EBIT. Still, we think it's important to have a clear strong definition of the adjusted EBIT.

Are there any questions? Maybe an oral question. Well, Sebastian Vogel has a follow-up question.

In terms of the year 2026 and the demands and how the year has started in sort of the land. I'm not sure I understood you acoustically the demand.

Well, in 2026, we had a lower flu season than on the previous year. So if you have a look at the graph, you will see that quite clearly. And of course, we sense that too, in terms of the frequency of flu and colds and essentially the sales of the product that are related to amount. As I said before, when it comes to sales and income, we're not that dependent on seasonal fluctuation, but -- as I said, the flu wave -- or the flu season was lower than on the previous year.

Any more questions? Next question from Dimitri [indiscernible]. Question number one. The diagnostics business, net sales of CHF 40.7 million. Is that in line with the total sales? Or is it September to December 2025 only? Then the AI strategy. When and where will AI be implemented specifically and the Vefora or products and some brands. How did Vefora do as opposed to the market? Now how does the -- what are the elements of that growth?

I don't get the second question. Are you talking about AI? The artificial intelligence is not what you're talking about? So when and where Will you specifically implement AI in the Galenica Group? Now first is diagnostics and net sales. Yes, the CHF 40.7 million are in line with the sales of Labor Team since being acquired at September through end of December. So that's just pro rata sales.

And I've mentioned it before in logistics, in the warehouse forecasting capacity planning, that's where we have AI pilots and marketing, of course. So all the logical branches where you use AI, talking to customers, they are smaller projects, as I said before. So this is a learning curve. We intend to build know-how. We have great people on board, and we have a clear guidance -- guidelines that we've defined on how to deal with AI. There is ongoing training for our surface on that topic, so that AI becomes part of regular business, regular processes of digitization.

But we do not want to do things for their own sake, with upgrading added value. So we have pilots working according to the principal pilot, see whether it's worthwhile and then take a decision. And now product brands and its development. Now we detailed that in January. We published that. Now the development was more or less in line with the market. So we saw a growth given a new distribution procurements with Cuba. And now the detailed publication of price and volume growth is something that we haven't published and that we're not publishing, but we've used all the synergy effects that we can.

Right. Is there a question on the call? Yes, we have a question by Adrian Hobbs. [indiscernible] and has said that closing down Bichsel is a security policy risk, how would Bichsel respond? And second, would Galenica offer to stakeholders to take over the production sites of Bichsel. Would they offer that to the stakeholders?

Now I've answered the first question, but I'm happy to repeat that. No, we don't see that as issue for security of supply or a security policy topic because we've carried out the conversation. So there are other opinions on that. And as I said, this is a consultation process, a standard process. So you announce what you are going to do and then there is the phase where negotiations are ongoing. Negotiations with other partners could be part of that and that's the phase that we're in right now, and that will be completed in the coming days, but I cannot give you any idea about the outcome of that.

All right. Thank you for all those questions on Bichsel. Are there any other questions? Right now, there are no other questions on the call. So I'd open up the mics in the room, if there are any further questions, but that does not seem to be the case. So then let's complete the -- let's conclude the Q&A, and thanks a lot for the your questions, your interesting question. And Julian, you have the floor for concluding remarks.

Thank you very much. for coming here. Thank you very much on the webcast, and thank you for your questions. We'd now like to say goodbye. Now the participants here in Zurich would be -- we would invite you to have lunch with us. Thank you.

[Statements in English on this transcript were spoken by an interpreter present on the live call.]

Shaping transformation towards an integrated healthcare system for Switzerland. Dear investors, analysts, representatives of the media, dear guests here in the room but also digitally on the screens. A very warm welcome to the Galenica's Investor Day. I'm Iris Muller, the Head of Corporate Communication. And I have the honor of leading you through today's event here at Stapferhaus. Well, that's how the place right now is completely dedicated to health and health care project partners to today's exhibition. Maybe someone has already seen the exhibition? Just a few, well, you have the opportunity today. On the other hand, you didn't come here for a visit to the museum, did you? You want to hear about Galenica, and we've provided a multifaceted agenda for you, and we'll hear more about that from the host of today's Investor Day. Please welcome Galenica's CFO, Julian Fiessinger.

Thank you, Iris. And a very warm welcome to Galenica's Investor Day 2025 to all of you, very warm welcome here in the room and to the guests on the webcast. You said this is about health and the health system in Switzerland. And you'll have the opportunity to hear -- to see our health care systems from different angles as perspective. We're here at Stapferhaus, the Exhibition Health first will provide you surprising, tumorous and also contemplated view of our health care system. Here at Galenica's Investors Day, we look to a cost-effective scalable part of health care. Health care with them as an investment case, if your wish. We'll cast a glance at individual market trends, and you'll see how Galenica has developed against the backdrop of these trends, so that we remain the #1 health care service provider in Switzerland going forward.

Our CEO, Marc Werner will start by giving you a strategy update, then we'll drill down to the essential business areas, pharmacies, products and brands, logistics and wholesale and diagnostics. You'll hear about the latest market trends. We will show you the strategic initiatives that we're following in the individual areas and what we intend to achieve buybacks. Then I'll give you a general market outlook, an overview of the regulatory initiatives and an update on our financials. And of course, feel free to ask questions after every presentation. After this event, you also have the opportunity of the tour at Stapferhaus together with us. So an intense varied agenda. So glad to see all of you looking forward to spending the day with you. Back to Iris, who will lead us through the day.

Thank you, Julian. And we also have the market stalls. Just like 2 years ago, you have the opportunity to talk and to see the stalls. So we have our management and the Labor team. With us today -- so the representative might want to stand because not everybody would know you, I guess. So please take the opportunity to network over lunch or in the coffee break. We're in the [indiscernible] in Zurich. But you can have a BP check, a diabetes checkup, and we'll show you how to manage your medication, and we have a product type of our latest pharmacy concept here that we've already used ourselves. Then Labor team has brought a robot, the state of the art and it doesn't even have a name. I'm going to call a ginger for the day, and you'll see why later on. And [indiscernible] our partner is here for new insurance models to show you. Anything I forgot? No, we're ready to get going. All right. Let's get started with the first part.

Let's start with a look to our strategy, and we'll talk to Galenica's CEO. Please, a very warm welcome give it for Marc Werner.

Well, Marc, transformation, that's the model of our Investor Day. You've been with us for 5 years as a CEO. How -- what does transformation means for you? And what you think about it?

Well, transformation primarily has to be fun in order to be integrated into the organization. For us, transformation, of course, is shaped by culture rather than technology. Technology basically follows cultural change. So it's not a project with a deadline or start date. It's an attitude. It's a constant change, constant asking question, constant development, and that's really a crucial point. And that means it's about people, our 9,000 staff. It's not about the managers or the Board. You have to build people and then they build a transformation for you. And of course, it's important that transformation is visible and tangible. That's a crucial element.

Good point. Do you have any examples that you could tell us how it creates energy? Well, you mentioned the pilot pharmacy, the Apple 360.

So on Saturday, we opened doors with a new pharmacy where we want to rethink pharmacy and take it to a new level because pharmacies have been looking the same for hundreds of years, and we thought that's no longer on in today's world. So we changed the customer experience, the way we deal with customers, how we interact with them. We change the purchasing experience, self checkouts and so on and so forth, up to a hands-on health care consultation so that the neighbor doesn't know what is going on. So that's a massive change.

And second, thing you can see here on the slide, that's our swing space. If you've been to our headquarters, you would have seen us that we live on the construction site and have done so for quite a while because we're revamping our headquarters. And that swing space shows transformation illustrates how we work. It's not the own office for the CEO or whatever. So we've created open spaces in a warehouse where we've integrated really the entire recycling where we reuse same for the new constructions. So it's got to do with cooperation at high level. I tend to work at the cafeteria so that everybody may approach me and they see me, they come to me, they talk to me. So I'm not in a silo office. And the most important thing about transformation is the following: it's never an end in itself. Transformation serves first and foremost, the consistent and efficient implementation of the strategy, creating value in the process. So it's not because we believe it's fun, it's all about the added value for all our stakeholders.

And of course, there also that takes us back to our staff because we need motivated staff. It's the customers, of course, our patients. It's you, the shareholders that we want to create added value for and we're the #1 in health care in Switzerland and therefore, it's also about society. We want to break the ground for a better and more efficient digital health care system. So that really is -- contributes to the strategy.

You could take us on a journey through the most important priorities of Galenica?

Well, the Galenica story really is all about innovation and trends and shaping the future. On the other hand, of course, we have a clear strategy of what we've added, and that's the entire strategy. There is no underlying value document or value proposition. This is what it's all about. This is how we try to lead the company. We do not mean to set boundaries by means of our network, but we try to unleash the energy of power, and power of transformation. But we have those 4 things here. We added value on the top left, the digital or physical challenges changes need to be developed. We want to have efficiency in the logistics network. And of course, the lab diagnostics business will be developed. And all these 4 fields, of course, come with their own KPIs, sustainability and success. It's about the efficiency of logistics. It's about the pharmacies and to make sure that we have a sustainable business model. That's a model for success.

Then we have fit shaping in the future, where digital health care system has been brought to and where we intend to digitize, but we also intend to interact with our network internally and externally. I believe we've come up with a leadership role over the past few years. And we are now in a situation where the digitization of the health care system is being brought forward by us together with our partners. And last but not least pioneers in transformation. We want to be the best employer because we fundamentally believe that, that attracts the best people, and they will create the best added values. And transformation will be shaped actively and sustainably. That's our strategy.

Now efficiency, that's one of the top priorities of the Galenica story. The biggest transformation project is logistics with the switch to a new ERP system. Now many companies are facing challenges when it comes to planning resources and facing a complex project management like this.

How has the launch been going for Galenica?

Well, if I look around the room, we've all worked for a few years. And it's -- we all know it's not the switch overnight in an IT project like that. So we're taking a step-by-step approach and we've also seen it. And we have to improve things once we press the button and the important thing is to have your people on board, the personnel Board. There could be glitches and teething troubles and you have to smooth that without the customer really noticing that too much. Of course, there will be teething troubles. And I'm convinced that we've been doing well, that we are doing well. It's not just an IT project, you see, It's always an IT product plus a change projects.

So I can see things are changing, and you have to get people on board. We have a logo where we switched to SAP last year, and we boosted efficiency. And the profitability, of course, that will have to come hand in hand with something like that is going to come by June next year in 2026. I'm convinced we're going to go for the switch in [indiscernible] and then we'll have a bubble of bubbly on that. So it's like all the big IT projects.

All right. And the latest member in Galenica's network is the Labor team. So you acquired them this year. Why did you opt for the diagnostics business? That's a business where we didn't have so much dealings with?

Well, I'm proud of that and that was an exemplary process. Now we launched an internal strategy process. So how to develop our existing business better and how to tap into new business areas. And some, we identified some of these business areas. I'm not going to list them today. But one priority was the Diagnostics business. And it was quite clear that it would make sense to really boost that, and we came up with a great team that really analyze the market thoroughly. And of course, you always need to stroke a luck. You have to find the partners willing to sell and Labor team was ready to sell. We went to Goldach for first time, and we saw that it juggles. So everything really fit together. And we're so proud and we're so happy to have a Labor team on board. And there are others who could explain that much more easily for you.

Now digitization is a big topic, of course. So health is not the bunch that's less down for this kind of innovation. How can Galenica change this? And how can it make a difference?

Well, we do come -- I do come from the world of technology. And throughout the past 6 years, I was observing the development. And I have to say that I was not surprised and there's no point in avoiding the subject. I think that one thing that Galenica clearly has managed is the increase of efficiency and the added value like we were able to bring stakeholders together to create better end-to-end process, a better compendium with HCI solutions. It's about the patient information system or doctor information system, which we can integrate properly.

And it goes from listing the symptoms up to an online appointment, advising the pharmacy, integration of telemedicine, e-prescription, e-medication plans a way in which we can manage these digitally. So it's an end-to-end process and this process clearly creates added value because it will only work if it adds something positive for every single stakeholder on the market, which is something that we have managed. And we now need to move ahead, digitalize more and be patient, which is not exactly my strong suit.

Well, Galenica is now active on a very large spectrum. And we mustn't lose a general overview on the market. So what's the next priorities on the list?

I think in recent years, we were able to significantly increase the value of our company. And at the same time, we were able to comprehensively renew our organization. So from my point of view, we have an excellent position to start off with. We have built a strong team. We have simplified structures and processes, and we're committed to a value and performance-oriented culture. We want to continue this development. We want to be focused on our clients. We want to continue this development, ensure organic growth and further efficiency gains and logistics, we want to establish the diagnosis business, expanding in the home care sector, particularly in that part, which right now offers us a perfect starting position.

So we want to expand. We want to become stronger, bigger, faster. And obviously, we do want to develop our diagnostics activities with the colleagues who are here and represented here today. We don't want to be fourth, which we are right now. So our target is definitely moving ahead and become better. And I think we have a good position in terms of our organization. We are able to react. And we've created culture that is able to see change as a chance and there's an opportunity. There are some changes that we already know. Others are still unknown. But every time it's a question of seizing the opportunity and create what's best for us.

Thank you so much, Marc, for this insight into the strategy. Now we're taking time for the first Q&A session. Julian, please come join us.

We will start by taking the questions from the participants here. Please wait until somebody brings you a mic. Please state your name and where you're from, so that people participating in the webcast can hear you. And we will take your questions right afterwards. So let's start here. Let's take the first question.

Gian-Marco Werro, Zurcher Kantonalbank. I'm going to be the icebreaker as the first question. In case of the Labor team, which has been mentioned here, Marc, you said that our ambition lies not in the fact that we want to remain #4 in Switzerland, but there's other big players in Switzerland. For instance, Unilab Sonic, Veolia. What's your take on this? How are they going to react if and when Galenica tries to consolidate that part of the market? Don't you think that they are on a quest as well and that they're going to raise their targets and that might create a battle around all those small and private labs?

Well, it's in every trade, it's a bit of a battle. It is a fight. And yes, obviously, there's some bigger players on that market. And we have listed those. We see them. And I think that on a lot of levels, we do have a better starting position because we have a strong consolidation because of the status of Galenica in Switzerland, we are clearly well positioned on the side of the clients. And we mustn't forget that the main target group for such a group of client is with doctors, with carers. And I think we're well represented there with a part of -- a market share of over 30%.

And I think that we are strong -- we have a strong position on the market. And hence, we can show and prove that we know how to do it. And generally speaking, I think we can add something in terms of a market consolidation. And as you say, small laboratories might not survive the changing market. And we're keeping our -- we'll definitely keep our eyes open and move ahead in this type of consolidation.

First question, there is another one.

My name is Jan Koch from Deutsche Bank. I guess that my questions are going to be answered later on, but I'm still going to try. When we, again, mentioned the Labor team, how much are you going to spend in terms of the consolidation in Switzerland? And are you excluding the fact that you might move into other European countries? That's my first question. And my second question concerns the pilots, I mean, the trial that were kicked off on Saturday. Do you know anything about the initial client feedback? Do you think that that's going to add to your share? And if yes, by how many points? And how about investments? Do you want to? Will you invest?

Well, Julian, I think we're going to take that question later on with our 3 colleagues are on stage. And when we talk about the ARPU side of it. But let's write down those questions because they are going to be answered. I think in terms of the Labor team consolidation, you might want to add something.

Yes, gladly do so. We have no clear ABGs, but the fact is we want to grow and we want to be attractive and profitable. In general, we have noted that this is a national activity, which is also due to the fact that right now, we do not have a disadvantage if we work with one of the biggest Swiss players. It's not going to disadvantage in the future if we move into an international field.

Okay. Any more questions here over there. Thank you.

The interpreter did not hear the name, but I have a question also about Labor team. we are talking about a 10% share of the market. Do you have any target objective in terms of capital markets. In terms of strategy, could you add anything in terms of the strategy and what it looks like in that field? Is the market actually growing on a structural level? And what do you have to imagine when I hear what I'm hearing now. Could you say anything about margins? Because when we talk about 8%, it's probably lower than if there is more. So we need a bit more flesh.

Well, you are anticipating a lot of things in terms of what we're going to present here. Labor team, again, very briefly, what we're aiming for, we want to be #1, maybe #2. And in the long run, we want to target on that level that we are in that position. We are quite -- we still have quite a lot to do before we get there. But I have to say that the other questions are very specific. Some of these points are going to be explained better in the presentation afterwards. So I think we're going to come back, if need afterwards.

Okay. After each presentation, there's a Q&A question. So I'd like to know if there's additional questions in the webcast. No, they're none in the chat.

Okay. Then let's move on to the next part. Thank you so much, Marc, for the first input on strategy.

So let us continue with our first topic that we're going to drill down into, that's transformation for pharmacies. So we have our trio in charge, Virginie, Stephan and Daniele, the common goal is to position the pharmacy at the -- as the [indiscernible] health care and they are going to explain that. And the next Q&A will be after the 3 presentations. We'll start out with Daniele Madonna, who's a pharmacist his self and he's in charge of the best possible of. Daniele, the floor is yours.

Well, there's almost no place in Switzerland where so many questions about health and health care are answered as in the pharmacy day after day. More than 300,000 patients go to a pharmacy every single day, about 1,830 pharmacies is what we have in Switzerland. They're there as a founding pillar of health care easy to access with a personal touch and high skills. We have 381 pharmaceutical experts, and we're the clear #1 in the market. This year, we're also celebrating the 20th anniversary of our Amavita pharmacies. And in March 2025, we opened doors to the 200th Amavita pharmacy in the Ticino, which is my home Canton. That development drives us to actively shape the future of the pharmacy landscape in Switzerland.

The role of the pharmacy has undergone obvious change. Customer expectations arriving. The boundaries between in-person and online consultations have been blurred and there is an ever-increasing shortage of skilled labor. If you want to hold your own in that environment, you need to rethink your pharmacy as a modern integrated health partner and get away from just the dispenser of medicines. Now how do we tackle that transformation at Galenica? Our strategy has 3 core goals: First, positioning the pharmacy as the first protocol in health care with a focus on consultations and services; second, securing and developing the best staff; third, investment and consistent online channel strategy. When you start with the first item, the pharmacy is the first protocol in health care. And I'll hand over to Virginie and Stephan later on for the other 2 points.

When talking about developing pharmacies further, many things start with their role within the health care system. In Switzerland, a pharmacy on average caters to 5,000 citizens. So for many people, it is the first and most frequent liaison when it comes to health care questions. That proximity to the population is an enormous strength, which is decisive for us. The more we can clarify questions at the pharmacy, the less burden there is on the entire system from GP practices to emergency departments. And with the second cost containment package, the central government have strengthened the competencies of pharmacies even further. Allow me to single out 2 topics out of that cost containment package that are important for pharmacies, namely vaccinations and into professional health care service.

Allow me to start with vaccinations. Now in the future, starting in 2027, the vaccines and the vaccinations that are carried out in pharmacies will be taken over by the basic health insurance. If these are vaccinations that are in accordance with the Swiss vaccination plan. And the second topic that is highly relevant for us in pharmacy is into professional services. So that is all about the therapy adherence and therapy optimization. So this takes us to chronic patients, hypotonic patients and what have you. So in the future, you can not only supposed to carry out hypotonic screenings in the pharmacy but also adapt therapies so that the pharmacy may adapt therapies in close cooperation with GPs and also work stay closely to the side of the patient. So that comprises medication analysis, again, in close cooperation with the GP.

These new services will have to be developed in the coming years, we'll have to carry out studies to check for efficiency and purpose and cost effectiveness. And then the Ministry of Health will check that and then it will be included in the catalog services. We're working quite closely with Pharma Swiss to come up with these services. And at Galenica, we are ready for that change, because we invested early on in the transformation from new product selling and dispensing medicines towards consultation and healthcare services.

Our holistic concept is consultation plus. That's one of the keys to enthuse our customers and to add value, it's holistic communication positioning concept. We have several components, marketing communication, the online journey and training the pharmacy teams and shop fitting even. And by the end of 2026, consultation plus is slated to be the standard or the norm rather in all our pharmacies and we're ready for the vaccinations. Today, more than 800 of our pharmacists have the technical certificate to administer vaccinations that means that we can vaccinate basically all of our network pharmacies.

And the figures show you that the demand for consultation is increasing massively, fee-based consultations, more than 150,000 and that's the number of fee-based consultation in health care services in the first half of the year. So consultation plus has enabled us over the past few years to convince the health insurance companies to include pharmacies as a port of call in alternative insurance models, comparable to the role of tele health for GPs. And several of the top names in insurance are already cooperation partners of ours.

And let me underline KPT in our corporation starting on January 1, 2026, about 170,000 people insured with KPT may use the consultation offers in our pharmacies without franchise, no deductible. So KPT is also represented here today, we have the opportunity to hear more about that model of the break or on their store at the first floor. And that will continue to boost store consultation. First our goal is to double the number of health care services in the coming 3 years. These consultations frequently also lead to cross-selling amongst other things because customers can also get drugs, can buy drugs, if needed. We have seen that the average goods basket of the consultation plus services is at about CHF 80; 1/3 consultation and 2/3 going to products. And that's also an important element of long-term customer binding, because of course, we answer their questions. We provide solutions and then customers will come back.

Well, again, you have the time to use consultation plus services today during the break, you can have your BP checked, your ears checked with an otoscopy or undergo a diabetes check. And we have 2 colleagues here [ Henry Schalla ] from the Amavita Pharmacy in Bergen. Natalie Bernard or the CoVitality Pharmacy and [indiscernible] Centre. And that takes me to my most important point, the top customer binding, that requires top personnel. How to secure that, that will be explained by Virginie.

[indiscernible] now can he even do that, that's the question you're asking yourselves. It's such an important role that we have to tell you. We have the people to reach our goals. Now I'll give you the update on that. What is it that we're talking about. We're talking about 6,000 staff in the pharmacies. So 2 main roles, pharmacists and assistants. And that's where we entered our transformation journey with them. We're going to take them on board, we are developing opportunities for them.

So how do we do that? So for the assistance we have developed what we call roles so they can take on more responsibilities. So they could have under than the personnel planning, that's quite interesting, also monetarily. And so that's no longer the classical of hierarchies that you are familiar with. So the roles that we've molded, they are in line with our strategy, our ways. And it's on one form of pharmacy could explain that better. So well, here from someone from the West of Switzerland and he is going...

[Presentation]

I'm especially proud that each and every one of them really has passed on at least one role in the pharmacy. So as I said, young talents, training people, that's not enough. We really have to reward them if they show over average commitment and one of the projects close to my heart was that to make sure that assistants can even become co-managers in a pharmacy and more than 30 of our pharmacies are doing that. So they have an assistant as a co-manager and one of them with us that's [indiscernible] who is upstairs at the store and working to provide the checks for you. It's not only about pharmaceutical assistant, but also about the pharmacists that we have. And we're talking about people who studied at a university to have a degree and we have to be there real early to offer them prospects. That's why we're offering what we call an assisted year. That's the practical year that they need to undergo.

We can say about 1/4 of the students of pharmacy in Switzerland takes that year with us. And of course, means once they graduated from the university, we can bind them to us and we can flank out their career path because it's not enough to graduate. If they take -- if we want to lead pharmacy, they have to become FPHS. So that's a technical certificate. So that's 2 additional years on the job. And year after year, many of our well-trained pharmacists become committed there because 2/3 of our pharmacists have somebody who is in training. So in April last year until last exam, alone, we had 60 young talents that we've sent to that exam. So we've bound them to us.

All right. That's the beautiful site where we are really committing ourselves to young talent. You might want to ask what is the efficiency and all that, a bit of an input on that. On the one hand, we have an internal standing pool. So we have 277 in staff that were in flexible modules. So they're always on call, they're flexible when it comes to site and they go wherever they needed. So that fantastic because that means we don't have to have external stand in. So that's a contribution to cost management. And another point to boost efficiency is that we work AI supported. So in the goods management, first and foremost and in the future in personnel management too. That's done throughout Switzerland, but also in the omnichannel, and that's where Stephan comes in.

We're transforming that into a first port of call, as you've heard. It's also the first place for our customers. We have heard it from Daniele that in view of the demographic changes and lack in terms of medical care personnel, it is very important to be able to provide this type of service. At the same time, we see that our customers are increasingly turning to digital channels. Around 80% of them go online before they turn to visit physical point step of sale.

We know a similar situation from a lot of other trades and industries. So a lot of clients expect a seamless experience between the online and off-line world, which obviously heightens the expectations in terms of the health market. As we have heard it today, everything that's going on, such as OTC liberalization will accelerate this trend. From today's perspective, a liberalization in terms of a certain number of OTC medication that were available in pharmacies solely can now be sold through other sales channels or alternative channels in the future.

Specifically, and according to current political discussions, this will affect those OTC medication that's not on the federal government's list of specialties, the SL list. This corresponds to a market volume of around CHF 900 million with a stable to slightly declining growth, practically speaking, 15% of Galenica Pharmacy sales. Galenica sees the OTC liberalization primarily as an opportunity because we have been investing for several years already into a consequent omnichannel strategy.

We are focusing on 3 core elements. First of all, the joint venture with Redcare as a pure online player. Secondly, the development of our online shops and digital customer journeys. And thirdly, the investments into pharmacies as the place of the future.

And I would like to go into more detail on the last 2 points. We have already talked about the importance of advisory services, and Daniele talked about it. But it's very important that on the same -- in the same sense, we have a positive customer experience on site. We have already mentioned the new concept, that's an internal, by the way, name, ARPU 360 future pharmacy experience. This is how we want to redesign the pharmacy experience at Amavita and Sun Store, and we want to become future-proof.

In that sense, we are focusing on the customer experience in the pharmacy and more strongly on the different customer needs and the designing of the pharmacy. We are creating a triage system based on the individual needs, and we are introducing a new semi-private consultation area, thereby eliminating the current frontal customer interaction separated by the counter. We are integrating additional digital tools into the interaction between customers and pharmacy staff.

In order to support this change in customer interaction, we are investing in our employees through targeted training. Last Saturday, and we've already talked about that, we have opened a new concept in the Glattzentrum in Zurich. And with this first pilot site, we'd like to gain a lot of insights into the customer behavior and their experience on spots. And we want to incorporate these into the further development, while improving what needs to be improved.

We are planning around 5 more pilot pharmacies by 2026 as the next steps, be it renovation or new pharmacies, and we want to implement these into the new concept at Amavita and also Sun Store. In order to give you a better idea of what the new pharmacy will look like, we have brought a mockup, a prototype with us today. So it's made of wood. It's not very 3-dimensional, but it will give you an impression and a sense of touch and feel. And otherwise, I'm happily inviting you to come see us when you're near the Glattzentrum.

This new pharmacy experience is embedded into a strong digital customer journey. A good example and an important milestone for linking digital and brick-and-mortar channels in the Galenica network is the prescription manager. This is a practical digital aid for people with repeat prescription, chronic illnesses or limited mobility. I'll receive information, I receive -- I'm guided, and I receive help when needed. And at the same time, it's making the repeat prescription easier. It can happen through click and collect on site or it can be delivered to your home. This type of service was launched at the beginning of 2025 and is now used by over 30,000 customers.

This service can also be tested in our pharmacy on the first floor. You can buy one of your products or prescriptions. Obviously, it's going to be a simulation, but that's how you can test the service and get ready for the future. In case you already have a repeat prescription, this is your chance.

In other areas, too, we see a strong adoption of the digital omnichannel offers that we are creating. We are seeing a strong growth in terms of the click and collect orders by over 50% this year. And over 1/3 of all consultation plus and vaccination appointments are now made online. We are hence confident that with the development of the new physical pharmacy experience and the digital offers, we are well positioned for future challenges and customer needs.

As you can tell, thanks to this presentation, we are in the midst of transforming pharmacies. And it is together that we are continuing to develop our success and the pharmacy of the future. We are focusing on 3 key areas: first, more competence for pharmacies, and we're ready. Secondly, investing into employees. We create and promote and retain skilled workers. Thirdly, omnichannel for an optimal customer journey. We are where our clients expect us to be.

And all of this pays off in terms of customer satisfaction and their loyalty. It ensures the relevance of pharmacies within the health care system, and it secures a skilled specialists and workers as well as ensures that we can manage personnel cost development. We are hence increasing customer satisfaction and gain market share.

Thank you so much for this trio. And we are taking your question now. Stephan, there's a question that was asked because you were deployed last weekend. What's your experience?

Well, my first experience was the fact that we were quite overwhelmed by the general interest we were witnessing there. So it was certainly a success in terms of the customer attendance in [indiscernible] in the Glattzentrum. And this new area of semi-private consultation has definitely created a lot of interest, and a lot of customers said that it was indeed very comfortable to not have anyone next to them or behind them.

And our colleagues on site confirm that same experience because it honors their experience and competence within that frame and framework. And it's nice to see what happens in terms of this transformation. When we have a self-checkout, it actually works because we know through other sales side that in the end, 10% of the client experience is affected by this. So anyway, after the very first day, I can say very good experience.

Thank you so much. We'll do it like we did last time. We take your questions on site and then take the questions on the website.

Yes. You mentioned the liberalization of OTC medication, and I'd be very glad if you could give us an update in terms of the timing. In the past, it was delayed time and again. And in terms of the regulations, I guess it wasn't easy. So where are we at?

Thank you for this question. Indeed, it's a bit difficult to have a clear time line. As of today, we think that as a next step, we will enter a consultation phase of the law therapeutic products in Switzerland and in terms of OTC medication. So that should happen by next year. And if that's the case, we think from experience that we'll end up somewhere around 2030 with the liberalization of the type of medication.

Okay. Two more questions. On the right side here.

The promotion of services within pharmacies, what are the difficulties in terms of the legal framework? What are the obstacles? And what can we do to counter these? And secondly, the new concept. I'm not exactly clear -- I don't understand exactly what the target is. Does the goal consist in reducing personnel on site of a pharmacy? Or is that personnel going to be used differently?

Well, I'm taking the first question. In 2017 and '18, there was a first revision on therapeutic products, and that has added to our competence such as vaccination or the prescription medication that we can hand over. So when those competencies are insured, we have to act. And that's how we develop consultation plus and how we have equipped and added to the competence of our personnel and our stuff.

Fact, nevertheless, is that this subject has not been picked up by the insurances because in the beginning, we have to fulfill every regulation before that can be added to such a system. And one of the possibilities consists in adding these to an alternative insurance system, and that's where we want to start.

In terms of the target of this new concept, I say that, as usual, we have several goals, several targets. On the one hand, differentiation. We obviously want to position our pharmacy as a differentiating factor in terms of other pharmacies, but in terms of what we offer, how we offer it. But we also want to raise the efficiencies and the way in which we treat our clients in a very differentiated manner. And obviously, we want through all of this, gain market shares.

There's a question in the center.

My first question is about vaccinations. You said that almost all Galenica pharmacies should be competent and give vaccinations. Do you have any idea or indication if other pharmacies have that same possibility? And can you explain to us what it means in terms of financial impact?

Well, with the revision of the law, the pharmacies have been unable to vaccinate. But in order to do so, the pharmacists or the ones that had finished before 2020, they have to do an additional training. Everyone can do that. And the new pharmacists who are studying now have almost finished, they have that included in the base costs. So in theory, all pharmacists can vaccinate if they are habilitated to do so. You do need a cantonal authorization, but you -- if you request it, you receive it.

The one big difference is about mostly the type of vaccination that can be used. And there's differences between the cantons, meaning that it's the medical service of each canton that authorizes the type of vaccinations that can be done. And we see that as we move on into bigger liberalization, cantons allow more and more of these vaccinations.

And with the second package of cost reduction, we see that all of the current vaccinations are going to be recognized and added to the list, which adds to the pressure on the cantons. And obviously, you need to have the right space, you need to invest. And I think it's difficult among the 1,800 pharmacies to state clearly how many actually vaccinate. But I'd say about 2/3 of them are allowed to.

In terms of the cost, the service as such has a value of CHF 20, CHF 30 per pharmacy plus the actual vaccine. And the vaccine goes anywhere up from CHF 15 to CHF 25, I think in the case of Tetanus, and can reach some CHF 100 when we talk about combined vaccines.

And just to follow-up on that. Of course, the vaccinations, that's also true for other services. We're not adding personnel to do that, so that's quite an attractive margin. And on top of that, we're boosting loyalty, and you can sell other products. So in itself, it's not an essential revenue stream, but will strengthen our overall business and boost our margin.

Now on consultation plus, you mentioned about CHF 80 on average per customer. How much is incremental, truly, because the patient will have been your customer before. So do you have any figures that could really underpin that in terms of the incremental increase?

Well, that's quite difficult, but you have to see that people would have turned to general practitioner, but they turn to the pharmacy and are being catered to. So if there is incremental sales, yes, there is, but we haven't measured it.

So there was a question in the front in the first row.

Now could we get back to that modern pharmacy and the options you have there in -- physically in terms of how you set that up? How would that be possible at all to build something like that. And e-prescriptions and repeat prescriptions, now you mentioned Amavita, but how would you differentiate yourself from MediService? Because after all, that does exist too.

Now of course, what we're trying to do is about a concept like that, it's supposed to work in different pharmacies. And that's what we're trying to achieve next year. Glattzentrum, of course, is a bigger format, a bigger pharmacy. And we believe that the basic underlying sort of a pharmacy like that can also be realized in the smaller pharmacy. So we're quite convinced of that.

And on repeat prescriptions, given -- we can take a look at the -- in Prescription Manager. Now basically, what we're trying to do, Amavita, Sun Store and Coop Vitality. What we are trying to achieve is that everyone, through how to repeat prescription, use that and as a differentiation from MediService. The more specific demands are being that you won't find everywhere these days, no. The Prescription Manager, that was for everyone.

Now let's see whether we have questions online. So we're opening up the opportunity for you to ask your questions or to enter them. Now right now, there are no questions. Well -- we -- that's the last question before we continue.

Let me get back to the protocol, pharmacy. Now for health insurances, we can see that they're trying to achieve that with telehealth to drive down costs. Now my question is, does that work? Are there any glitches? Because the health care insurance could really boost that and say trying to the pharmacy, don't go to the doctor or to the hospital.

Well, that's true, and that's going to come our way. So we could see in the individual models that we have, and you see more of that later on. So we have a more bigger collectives, as I said before, it's 117,000 people that we can address. And then for KPT alone and then other insurance company will have to do something.

Now the pharmacies, in the past, were not part of that system. But now we're on a par with GPs and telehealth. So we thought for an equal say for pharmacies. So bigger cooperation so we can achieve more, and the health insurers will advertise that more in the future and that will come our way in the coming months.

Wonderful. Thank you so much Virginie, Stephan and Daniele, for your contributions.

All right. We'll take a coffee break now. So please use it to get your system going because if you get up the stairs, you'll find the market stalls, coffee and few energy boosters. Have a look at Ginger the robots, have a look at [indiscernible]. Downstairs, you'll find the restrooms, and we'll continue at 11:30 here and online. See you then.

[Break]

And that's a good sign and I hope you all back also online. I told you 11:30, but it's really 11:15. So let's get started, let's say, and have a look at the health care market, which is characterized strongly by societal development, Tom Szuran. He's going to show why self-optimization prevention are not just fads, but real opportunities also for Galenica.

Thomas, over to you.

All right. Let's have a look at the consumer health care market. 46% of the Swiss population want to do more for their own health care. 75% believe their health competence is high, are very high, but just 11% feel really healthy. That's a consumer portal, GFS has [indiscernible]. That's a wonderful entry into the world of the consumer health care market. People want to take care of their own health. They want to do something for it. That means our market is growing.

And I've been in health care for about 30 years. And I feel that -- so has never been as exciting as today. The market is changing, needs are changing. Demand rises in new channels and category, and that's the environment that our subsidiary, Verfora and its subsidiaries, some have been added is moving. And let me give you an insight into the developments we're seeing at Verfora how -- into the market and how Verfora is moving in this environment.

Let's have a look at the development in the market there. First, what are we seeing? As I said, prevention is becoming ever more important. People want to take care of their own health these days earlier and they do prevention. Then self-optimization and longevity are strong drivers in that market. We want to remain fit in our old age. We want to be high performers, and we want to look good.

And that means that the market has an answer before that customers are ever better informed. After Dr. Google, we're now increasingly seeing Dr.AI. But the market also is becoming volatile and loyalties waver. Now demographics will for us not talk of our aging society, but of our young people have completely new demands, and they move totally different in the entire digital world and omnichannel strategies. We heard about that.

From pharmacies, consumers are showing cross-channel movement. So we have to live up to that. Of course, there are challenges. Margin pressure brings to mind, the price sensitivity of customers has increased. They're looking for the cheapest possible channel. Purchasing is becoming more expensive. So there are regulatory changes, there are changes in the needs and demands of our customers. Quite obviously, if you see these trends, identify them and consistently adapt to them, you'll win. And of course, Verfora is going to do that.

Let me turn to Verfora now. In brick-and-mortar professional shape, Verfora is the clear #1. We're about twice as big as #2 and 3 Bayer or Hela. We founded in 2017 and in 2018, '19, we developed a clear-cut strategy and have been consistent in implementing it, as Mike said, we had a strategy. We found a target and we're implementing it. And one of our goals at Verfora was to grow organically with our core markets and [indiscernible], Triofan and [indiscernible] have provided for that. You'll be familiar with this plan. They come up with a 50% plus in sales on 2018.

Second, growth and organic growth. So we intended to acquire or license interesting brands or companies in that sector, too. You can see that here, all these brands have been added. It's about 20. So about 20 extra brands that we added complementary medicine, for instance, that has been outperforming the market. We took over Spagyros in 2022 and Padma and received an exclusive license for the brand Omni-Biotic, the fastest-growing market thing in the market. And we have them on board. The latest example that you can see on the right-hand side is the distribution partnership with Cooper Consumer Health that was launched at the beginning of 2025.

So if you have a look at the strategy in 2019, Verfora has managed to more than double our sales. Now sales development in products and brands is a bit hard to follow, however, I must admit that since 2024, if you compare it to the figures as published by IQVIA how it come has to do with the fact that IQVIA does not show the export business, about 25% of sales, and that's got a different development from the business in Switzerland. And the main reason, however, has to do with the adaptation of the EU directive for medical products in May 2024. That means that products like Perskindol and Triomer will have to be adapted in their composition. It's different for us than for food.

For us, it takes 2 to 3 years because you cannot simply switch or change the product of the end, and that's why we supplied the markets with bridging stocks in Switzerland and in Europe in 2024, which created several million additional sales for products and brands. And that's not going to be in the books for '25 and '26. And if you have a look at the results for the group products and brands has done a bit -- has shown slower growth than in 2024.

And on top of that, of course, seasonal volatility, the flu, hay fever, the number of sunny hours, mosquitoes. This year, for example, there was almost no summer flu. There was too much rain, not enough sunny hours and the mosquitoes were not there both in Switzerland and with our neighboring states, a minus 50% simply because there were no mosquitoes. Now next year, the mosquitoes will be back, and we'll be happy again.

But let's look into the future of Verfora over the past few years historically, Verfora is almost exclusively focused on brick-and-mortar sales. That was where business was and was correct. It was the right thing to do. More than 300,000 customers go to the pharmacy every day after all. So that is essential sales channels also for the years to come. And we have a vertical cooperation between Verfora and Amavita and Sun Store [indiscernible] and Wind concept. That strengthens our entire group.

But other channels are becoming ever more important. So all products except for the medicine of [indiscernible] can, may and will be offered more strongly also via other channels. That's not a new phenomenon, but it's more of a dynamic development as opposed to the past. So Germany, France, Austria, they are more active in our markets, and that has an influence on the flow of goods and our price structures. If you combine that with the changing customer desires, of course, we have new product walls.

That leads us to an adjustment a bit of an adjustment of Verfora strategy for the coming years. We are going to develop products according to the wishes of the customers for Algifor, we've come up with liquid sticks. That's liquid Algifor. The customers wanted that because they do not want to swallow pills. They don't want dissolve some powder, but they want to use the product on the go [indiscernible] pharm. That's classic cold medication, but it's also there for hay fever and for cough today. So we're developing our brands into the depth and in breadth.

Omnichannel, that's a new topic. As I said before, the customers went to the pharmacy. They had a problem, a headache, and they looked at the shelves and bought that product. Today, quite often, they take their decisions earlier, social media, online, friends, what do I do if I have a headache. So they get the medication online or they already have an idea when they come to the pharmacy. So of course, we'll have to really cater to that development and with Omni-Biotic and Veractiv we gather experience, and we build on that. It's working well. And that should work out fine.

What is becoming ever more important is the awareness of the brand, the recognition of the brand. Usually, you look at a product in the shelf. But we have to make sure these days that the promise of the headache will go away is already in the minds of the customers as soon as they try to get information on social media wherever.

So how would I have to make the brand known. That is something that we are going to focus on in the future. Now you're all familiar here with the perks. So a bit of a nice mascots to remind the customers of what this is all about. That's part of the game.

Now allow me to close with a remark from the beginning of my presentation. It's a truly exciting time for the consumer health care market and Swiss market leader, Verfora canton will shape the future market development. So I can't wait.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Thomas. We are moving into the next Q&A. And now I'm going to specifically address the webcast because no questions were published so far. [Operator Instructions]

Let's kick off with the questions on site. And we hope that there's more question on the webcast now.

[indiscernible] Capital. We are at roughly 10% market share. Would it be possible to say something about the limits of the market? Where is the limit?

Well, the limit is 100%. We can't go beyond that. It's a very heterogenous market. And we are twice as big as #2 and represent 10%, which shows how fragmented the market is. And obviously, we try to extend. And this is a challenge, a challenge that we need to deal with. It's not easy because #3 and 4 are international companies that cannot be sold simply. So we need to find out which are the adequate alternatives. But we'll take the opportunities as they arise.

So what does it mean if #1, 2, 3 together represent over 50% of market share? So the other ones have basically like 1%, 2%?

Yes, indeed, there's like 250 to 300 small companies that have a very small percentage. And from that point of view, we have to ask if that makes any sense even, because if I have to integrate into a full company with 3 million of turnover, it's something that's worth asking.

So what does make sense? I think that's difficult to say. If it works within the portfolio, the answer is yes. And otherwise, it's no. But we have a very large spectrum already and then we need to see what kind of indication can work with what we already have. And in the end, it's not important if it's an integration or an acquisition, but we've seen that there's a huge growth. But at the same time, we don't have -- in terms of Omni-Biotic's, any possibility of purchasing the company. Nevertheless, we were able to get the license for ourselves. We don't need to acquire everything. We can do it ourselves.

Okay. Excellent. Any other questions? Yes, please.

[ Patrick ] [indiscernible] from Zurich Kantonalbank. The link between the introduction of this presentation and what we said afterwards isn't entirely obvious to me. You said there was a growing awareness in terms of health within the population. Where do you see the potential? Where do you see that there's going to be a higher turnover. Because maybe if people focus on their health, they will need less medication.

The question, I think, deals with the question of preventing illness. Because people don't want to become ill, don't want to fall ill. So if everybody takes care of that, they invest -- in terms of supplements, for instance, a lot of people take these in addition to their usual food. And in that sense, there's a possibility to extend in terms of general commerce, not just in pharmacy, but in general, because clients find information online, they purchase online or offline, and that's the field where we see the most potential in terms of growth.

Julian, would you like to add anything? Okay, then let's take the next question.

Carla Banziger from Vontobel. You said that the channels are going to be extended and the longer the more international competitors are going to enter this market. So how many offers are available on our actual market? And to what extent do you see that this is a risk for us? If I think of Redcare, there's always the own brands that are sold. How do you see this in terms of brand?

Yes. Obviously, that's one part that we're taking into account when it comes to the strategy. And the question of how we use other channels because we have our own segment, with our own brands, and there's obviously the question of where do these come from? What role can they play or should play? And on the other hand, thanks to Redcare, we became aware of brands or products that were not on our radar. So yes, on the one hand, it's a challenge, but on the other hand, it's a huge opportunity.

Any other question? Not right now. So let's check. Is there anyone on the webcast who would like to ask a question? No questions asked on the web chat. Well, I hope everybody is still here and did not fall asleep. So let's close this part of the Q&A. Thank you so much, Thomas.

And then let's continue with our next subject -- subject wholesale and logistics, which is our platform within the Swiss health care system. And Andreas Koch is going to show us how Galenica, with its company, Alloga, Galexis and Unione will not only ensure a secure and efficient supply of medicines to Switzerland, but also drive Galenica's growth in a targeted manner.

Thank you. Let's focus together on logistics. I came with a big number, 100 million of packages of pharmaceutical products pass through our logistics facilities each year. What do we have to imagine when we look at this? We could divide this number through 365 and try to understand what it means in terms of daily business. But the seasonalities, for instance, yesterday, almost 500,000 packages were commissioned yesterday through our logistics system. That's a big number and that's our daily bread in terms of our business.

On the other hand, with our site in Burgdorf with Alloga, we have some sort of [ foot knocks ] in Switzerland in terms of stocks, where we have roughly CHF 1.5 billion of worth in medication, and I'm using the word of administration here because we don't want -- which is not the right word because we don't want to be administrator, but we want to see as a motor. We want to see as a pillar in terms of the health care system for the Swiss people.

Through the last years, there was a certain dynamics, and the market and its structures have changed. And I'm going to talk about this in further detail and look into what has changed and where. But basically, the market is growing, which, as such, is positive. When we look at the turnover in our sales numbers, we see that in terms of turnover, there's been a huge development throughout the last 5 years. But in terms of sales, it was not that high, which shows us that structurally speaking, in this portfolio, a lot of changes happened, and I'm going to talk about this.

Throughout the last 5 years, the volume has risen by 7%, roughly, which holds its own challenge in terms of logistics. And on the other hand, we were able to develop our market share, which is something that makes me personally very proud because besides the acquisitions that we have completed within Galenica and which has an impact in terms of wholesale logistics, we really manage well in terms of acquisitions of third markets. And third markets is not meant in a demeaning way. It's a specific challenge, which allows us to improve our performance on the existing markets. Beyond that period, we need to look into degree of availability and our deliveries, meaning the available number and units of medication that we can ensure delivery for. And besides all of those projects, which I'm going to present to you, we have had a permanent and constant performance, which makes me, again, very proud.

Let's look into one area of strong structural change, which has an impact on logistics. We are going to talk about generic medication and its authorizations on the market. Why does it have such a strong impact? Imagine the following: a very good blockbuster loses its patent, and that's a nightmare of every pharmaceutical company. We've heard it before in the media and when they say that the next product is produced without patent, what does it mean? In terms of our logistics, it means that a product which brings very good results is going to be replaced, not through by a different product, but by 4, 5, maybe 10 different products.

At the same time, the price is going to be lowered, meaning that our turnover is under pressure and the logistic complexity is extended. And that's the case of generic medication. And the same thing for biosimilar medication, which is even -- where this is even stronger. So sometimes it's products that need a specific logistic chain of delivery, products that need to be refrigerated or any of that sort. And here another example throughout the last 5 years, and I've mentioned this before, we've had a market growth by 7%, whereas the refrigerated products have risen by 35%, and that's a high complexity in terms of logistics.

Another point is the security of supply in Switzerland. Of course, you can read about that. You've read the [indiscernible] and we've heard about that in the press -- hundreds of products are not available. So that's, of course, a challenge in logistics for us because the demand is there and the customers ask us, can you get that for me? Are there any alternatives? And as soon as the product is available, there's a huge rush in logistics because everything has to be done at the same time. So we're suffering from that nonavailability, but we're not suffering in darkness. We're doing something about it. And over the past few years, we've teamed up with -- to found the safety stock initiative.

The goal is there are 350 key generic drugs, and we're building additional safety stock for them so that we can do something for the sake of the security of supply. It's not the be all and end all, but that creates quiet in the system. And of course, that's a great opportunity to offer services. Of course, it's not easy. So as early as years ago, we started to invest because we're strong in distribution, but not in warehouse stock. So if we build warehouse capacities up, then, of course, that entails investment. Now investment. We've invested quite a lot over the past few years. Of course, we have to really have the capacity and the answer is technology and to manage all that. So we've invested into that to have better throughput times that we're delivering twice a day.

We're driving down the sources of error and boosting productivity in the process. So how do we do that? Let me give you an example. Marc has already mentioned it. We're in the midst of launching SAP. And if we look back to Alloga, that's where we managed to switch our ERP system to SAP and launch EWM to boost productivity by 20% in operations. So that's -- of course, that's a classic boost to productivity, but it also reduces complexity. So that is what we are trying to do also going forward. Now the next phase of digital transformation, that was Galexis. I told you last year that we're planning to go live with Ecublens and the warehouse there. And that's an ERP that affects all of Galexis with billing of customers and suppliers and that's also true for Ecublens. And in Ecublens we commissioned new ERP system, the EWM so that allowed us to go live with that but I'm not...

[Presentation]

Of course, that was open heart surgery, what we did there. You saw the figures. So we didn't stop to supply people with 50,000 items a day. So we did that while operations were ongoing and people who work there were not used to use a computer in their work. So there was a personnel who had been with the company for 35 or 40 years, and it was a major step for them, a difficult step for them. And you can imagine that customers and employees really cursed us as to how you could do such thing. But still, it's gone well. Let's have a look at Niederbipp -- shall we, that's where we're also going to switch on over to SAP, the master data have already been completed, then the customers and suppliers also have also switched to SAP. And of course, we're going to follow suit with logistics. We have a large-scale transaction volume, which is a challenge because we're switching the system.

On the other hand, it's an opportunity because, of course, we want to even boost our transaction volume going forward. And the existing system couldn't do that. So once that is completed, let's look to the future. We will have an excellent foundation to continue to develop further technologically. And of course, there is AI that can support us and will support us in many places. These are 4 topics that I brought, but there are others that we are envisaging right now. Now the article -- the item allocation that we will have to determine quicker to see where the items will have to go at which height in the warehouse, for instance. So we are going to do that. We're also planning for the future. So there is excellent potential harbored there that we get more efficient in catering to our customers to really give better answers to their needs and really focus on what is close to customers' hearts.

And last but not least, that the capacity planning. And so using the people where they are needed day after day. So making our logistics stronger, smarter and being closer to the customer. All of that should be an excellent starting point for the future for us so that we may be future-oriented and efficient in our service provision for the customers.

Thank you so much, Andy, for this insight into logistics, how positive are you in terms of the conversion [indiscernible] by 2026?

Yes. Well, if I said that everything is going for the best, I'd be extremely -- I'd appear very overconfident probably because obviously, some problems are going to arise. We are very well prepared. We have opted for a strategy that allows us to draw our learning experience, thanks to Ecublanc. And we are already at a very high level of automization. And the whole teams have get to -- have to get used to working with IT in a different way. But it's not that difficult. So if something does not work, something needs to change.

So first of all, question. Is there any question in the webcast? No questions asked in the webcast. Well, at least I tried. Then let's continue and take the questions on site. Maybe at one point, we will have a question online. Any questions right here?

Just a question about the safety stock initiative. I think it's definitely a very positive initiative. Now my major question is, what about the investment that's already been made? Are there going to be further investments necessary in terms of stock?

Yes, we have an additional initiative, which we just launched within the group. aiming, thanks to the introduction of the SAP system and the capacities, we'll be able to extend, meaning that if we need to raise our capacities within our own stocks like in view of Galexis, then we'll also have the capacities offered by Alloga, meaning that we don't need to make everything bigger in order to stock more products, but we use the capacities available in Alloga because in that case, it really was a question about the handover of property. And then within this, it was necessary to have a marketing measure in order to allow for us to go to market with what we have.

Just a quick follow-up question. When you said it's an advantage in terms of competitors, can we think that we have carried the cost ourselves? What about security?

Well, in this case, we did have a win-win situation, which we built with Sandoz. We would not have been able to do it out of our own strength solely because we wouldn't have been able to ensure financing of such initiative. In case of Sandoz, it was a clear advantage in terms of the Swiss market and ensures their availability because they went in terms of stock market, it wasn't such a good thing to up their stock because they obviously wanted to ensure that they have a good standing, a good position. And thanks to working together, we really created a win-win situation, which made our customers a winner.

Just in general and to complete that point, when we raise our stocks, it's particularly because of the limited margin in terms of the big markets, a lot of the cost is going to be carried by the producer.

Here a question at the center. [indiscernible] Partners.

Could you tell us something -- could you tell us if Niederbipp and Ecublens are about the same size in terms of the site? And secondly, you're sharing the distribution margin with your data science. Have there been any changes compared to the past or in the recent past? And secondly, there's obviously a tendency to lower the prices. So what does that mean for us?

So it's 2 different questions. In the past, Ecublens was 1/3 and Niederbipp 2/3. Now with the transformation, we changed. In the end, Ecublens was just 1/5, but our goal consists of going back into the same proportion. Now that we have stabilized our activities, we'll be able to raise it again. Please let's not forget that about 1/10 of our volume goes through [indiscernible]. I don't mean it in the sense of still going through [indiscernible]. It's absolutely possible that we're going to raise the activity on the side of Unione in order to go beyond 1/10. And yes, we aim for Ecublens to be at 1/3 or more, which will allow us to go live safely.

Secondly, margins. The fact is that when prices go low, the margins based on the turnover get lower, too, which we try to counter by adapting our tariffs in terms of logistics, allowing us thus to make our margin based on the actual work and not in terms of the value of the product. There should obviously be a relation in terms of the value of the product because that's a fact. If we have damage in terms of an expensive product, we need to have a certain guarantee and safety. But it also means that we provide a logistics service and we can invoice that. And yes, the market keeps asking for more efficiency, and we'll always do that. We do have new regulations, which will add pressure to the trade because it raises the need. And yes, that's an ongoing discussion. And we are trying our very best to follow up on it and to ensure that we have a stable and continuous performance in order to not become too dependent. The simple answer is no.

Here's our finance -- Chief of Finances. I'm just here myself. All right. And we do have a question asked in the chat. Yes, we did receive a question asked by [Stefan Schneider] from [indiscernible]. The question is, why aren't there any complete automization, let's say, with logistics robots?

Well, robotics. Robotics is progressing and fast. And we talked about this during the break. It would be a huge advantage for us if we could use parts of the robotics. In the past, robotics were not efficient in terms of initiating it, meaning that the use of it, we saw those turnarounds, which -- with the different lightings. That's something where we could use robotics, and that's something that's provided by the producers or the builders. But in terms of installing the system, it's still complex because we have different heights, weights, different movements. So if anything, say, drops, the whole system breaks down.

So it's something that's complex, and it would need over-dimensional effort in terms of the people who can use the robots. But in terms of AI, we'll have a real game changer or at least we think we will because those machines can probably train themselves. And we have an ongoing discussion with our providers and have created conditions to test at least the possibilities of robotics in that sense.

Thank you so much. Any last question?

Yes. I have a very basic question. Why is Galenica the best provider of logistics? Is there any reason? I have a second question. Is the CapEx cycle finished? Or do we need to invest further? And thirdly, don't you think that you enter into competition with diagnostics because all of these need capital. And in that sense, would it be possible to cut off logistics in order to have the necessary funds for diagnostics?

All right. So the question, if it strategically speaking, it makes sense. Well, I do have my own opinion, but it might be slightly tainted. Well, I'd be happy to answer. It's a question that we've often asked. Isn't the sum of all the parts higher than the individual numbers. And we always came to the conclusion that the sum of it all brings worth. But obviously, logistics is in our DNA, and we do have several synergy effects, particularly in terms of retail. We're close to the market, not just because of the pharmacy, but because also of the third market and because we feel the pulse of the market. And that's an important element when it comes to strategy, when it comes to acquisition and the development of certain sites because we're close to the market. And because of that proximity, we can provide exclusive services in terms of pharmacies that don't even go through a tender, and our competitors don't even hear about it.

And when it comes to diagnostics, and that's interesting, we see an overlapping in terms of the focus because diagnostic brings us closer to one of our target groups, doctors. Because in the past, we had that proximity in terms of logistics and self-dispensation where we have roughly 1/3 of the market. But now together with diagnostics, it's one core part of the synergy because we can target our sales teams. I mean, aim our sales teams and have a common go-to-market approach and use this when we work with doctors and care providers in order to be seen as a partner. We're not just selling medication, but we're going to offer a full package in terms of lab services, too. In that sense, that works beautifully.

In terms of logistics and thanks to a huge part of the market, we can open a lot of doors. You've also mentioned the need in terms of investments. And fact is that we are top of the pops when it comes to modern investments. But we do have a need for further investments on a smaller scale, renewables and others, but it's not going beyond a certain level. And in terms of CapEx, we did have a CapEx budget of EUR 70 million to EUR 80 million per year. Now with the last purchase in terms of lab, it's going to amount to EUR 80 million to EUR 90 million per year. And within that framework, we can work with each part. We did have [Apple 360]. Is that going to explain CapEx? No, it won't because the investment in terms of pharmacies and so on are going to be dealt with within the normal and standard CapEx budget.

So that corresponds to roughly 1/4 of our global CapEx budget in terms of investment and CapEx.

All right. Very good. I think it's about time that we close this Q&A. We will hear more during the afternoon about finances and are now going to take our lunch break. Thank you so much, Andy.

Our lunch break happens on the first floor again next to the market stands, there's a flying lunch. And by the way, you can also measure your blood sugar because we are measuring [indiscernible] blood sugar. And we'll continue here at 1:30. This time this is correct, 1:30. We're looking forward to seeing you again, and that's when we continue with Labor team. Thank you so much. Enjoy your meal.

[Break]

Welcome back, everyone. I hope you had a wonderful lunch. I was worried that I might spill food down my front, but I didn't. So I'm happy. And I've heard we have 22 people on the webcast. I hope you got a nice break too. Now you saw it at the market store with Labor Team, robots are not high in the skies for them, that's already a reality. And there were quite a few people who wanted to take Ginger home with them so that Ginger could assist at the office tomorrow, but Labor Team insists on taking Ginger back with them at a big square meterage, and we're here for Alain Cahen, who is a medical doctor and the CEO of Labor Team, and he's going to talk about the size of the central lab in Goldach. Alain, a very warm welcome to you.

Thank you so much for those wonderful words of introduction, ladies and gentlemen. I guarantee that I'm not a robot. I'm real. Now did you know that 70% of all medical diagnoses are based on laboratory analytics? And did you know that these 70% amount to no more than 3% of overall health care costs. You can see that lab analytics is highly efficient. And we've learned during the pandemic that we're relevant to keep the system going, 100,000 samples were dealt with by us in the period. Now that's what we're doing day after day. So this is what I'd like to show to you today. We're the fourth largest lab in Switzerland. And together with Galenica, we're going to provide for additional growth. We're a well-established player in this market, and we have deep market understanding. And the essential thing is that we're investing every year about EUR 7 million into our infrastructure, into digitization and into automation.

I believe there's a bit of a technical glitch that we have here. Well, thank you. You can see the dynamism of the market, the lab market. It amounts to a total of about EUR 3 billion. So there is the private labs, that's also us, one half, then you have the hospital labs. And you have the GP labs in the practices. And that's special for Switzerland that doesn't exist anywhere else. And there are certain trends, of course, first is quite similar to what you would expect from other health organizations, so increasing test volumes. So of course, you want to know whether you're healthy or whether you're not healthy, people get older. And outsourcing is another trend of more and more labs, namely the hospital labs and the physician labs, they outsource to us, the private labs.

Then market consolidation. That is ongoing. So smaller labs are really feeling the pressure, and we'll have to hand over to bigger labs. We're also testing a lot of volumes from other labs and the regulators. Last but not least, of course, we'll have to keep to the rates. The analysis is for lab medicines, [indiscernible] is true for pathology. We are the #4 labs in Switzerland, and our home is Goldach. In Switzerland, we have 350 people that used to be 400 during the pandemic. And the special thing is that we cover all of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. So we can do that, that sets us apart from the crowd and has to do with our sophisticated logistics and 25 people will take care of that.

We have a one site strategy. That's important. So how big is that? That's the answer that [indiscernible] asked more than 12,000 square meters or even 12.5 to be exact. And we offer more than 2,000 tests, which is unbelievable amount. And that's important because we test everything ourselves. More than 99% of what is coming in will be tested in Goldoach. So 7 million tests a year, do the math and we'll end up with the day-to-day tests. And we're led by doctors. It's not just me. My colleagues have undergone scientific and medical training. That's the management and the labs, of course. So we understand the language of the customers, which are medical doctors. The next essential thing one-stop shop, everything under one roof, the lab medicine and pathology. And that's a rare occurrence in Switzerland to have everything under one roof, so the pathologist can talk to the medical doctors about certain patients.

Let's embark upon a journey shall we? Where does my blood go? You will ask that. It's not just blood because we do all kinds of bodily fluids, so everything, but also cells, what have you. And on the Swiss map, you can see we go from the bottom left to the top right. That's the longest possible journey from Geneva to Goldach. So first and foremost, you need a prescription. So the doctor tells you to undergo a certain checkup. So blood sampling, biopsy, what have you. And the essential thing is an electronic order, which is crucial, and we have our own IT because when the order is placed in Geneva, we know that something is coming our way in Goldach immediately, which comes with a lot of advantages.

So we have a sophisticated logistics. We have bike couriers. We have used the trains and other couriers. So that's a maximum of 5 hours, 4 hours on the train and 30 minutes each for the 2 couriers on the bike. And we've externalized that. So they are external partners, 60 external partners in Switzerland who work with us. So we've arrived with the sample on the top right. What happens in the lab? 70% of the volumes that comes to Goldach come to the core lab. We've opened doors in January. That's the biggest and most complex lab in Switzerland. So I could explain a lot. But we...

[Presentation]

And the second one is lack of staff. We obviously need time and resources within Labor team and in the structuring of that team. It's also necessary to counter the lack of specialists. Those machines do not and never will work on their own. They don't need activation as such, but we also need the necessary tests, which must be validated. There's a question of quality control, all of that's important. Automation, hence, is important, but we not only do automation. We do innovation. And I think that within our industry, we are top of the class when it comes to innovation. Within the last 3 years, we have launched 15 new tests on the market, which is something that the industry as such should provide, but it's been slacking recently.

And we have decided and clearly put it on our banner that we want to provide the service, particularly including tests for endometriosis and prostate cancer. We're the only innovative laboratory that offers this kind of test. And we have hence received a lot of requests by university hospitals who are now sending us order. But even before that, and I've mentioned the pandemic and as a lab team, we had up to 10,000 additional orders per day in terms of coronavirus test. That's 10% of the tests in Switzerland, which were carried out by us, but we were also the first ones to provide those tests. And then we were the first lab that was ensured an interface with the federal office in order to transfer and transmit the results of the test. And we help others do the same.

So our journey within the lab is something that we have seen, but it doesn't end there because after the arrival in the lab, we need to transfer the results, and that happens electronically through Internet, through the different networks. And so this is highly digitalized. IT is the backbone of any kind of laboratory. And in our case, it's very particular. We have more than 30 coworkers. And I keep saying that, in fact, we are an IT company because we have all those interfaces. We've got the impact in terms of development of our machines and everything else. As of now, 80% of our orders are dealt with electronically.

And we also transfer the results electronically. And that is an inverse strategy. And in fact, our competitors do the opposite. So they internalize one thing and then externalize the rest. And my colleague, Mr. Brinkmann, out there in the back is very proud because we are the first green lab in Switzerland. And we are one among only 4 in Europe who were certified as the first green and sustainable laboratory. And it's not just related to our logistics, it's our ecology with the use of green energy and circular economy that we apply everywhere we can. And that's something that distinguishes us on the market. So what's next?

Particularly when it comes to our collaboration with Galenica, there's a lot of possibilities in order to have further growth. We have organic growth, which is the first target. We know our clients, and we're very close to them. And we've seen where we can make a difference, thanks to our innovation. That's the first aspect. Secondly, we are aiming for inorganic growth. We have added 2 acquisitions as Labor Team within the last 4 years. And we are watching the market and very closely and want to ensure an organic growth as well.

And finally, in the end and with the Swiss company, we want to raise the Swiss flag. And we want to generate new ideas, continue on our path of innovation, and that is something that is going to happen, thanks to the partnership with Galenica and it's going to add further growth. I hope that I was able to give you a quick overview of what's going on in our industry, what happens in terms of Labor Team. I will probably answer all of your questions, but we'll pass the mic first back to Iris.

Thank you so much, Alain. It was very interesting. And from the beginning on, we were asked a few questions about Labor Team when the Q&A was available.

Let's see how many of these questions are still unanswered as of now. Let's start here.

My question concerns the fact that you said that you have a huge advantage because of your site. What about acquisitions? Do you simply implement these on your platform? Or can you imagine creating a second site in order to gain further speed?

That's a very essential question. I think that when it comes to routine, then it's definitely the core lab that's going to fulfill that role. When it comes to specificities, things that happen somewhere in a small lab, somewhere in Switzerland, we probably decide case based. But that's probably something that we use in case of any specialty popping up.

Next question.

Yes, it's a question basically going into the same direction. You said you do have more than one lab.

Yes, that's a fact. We have one strategic site, meaning that the big volumes are sent to Goldach. And yes, we have done 2 acquisitions, the hemostatic and thrombosis center in Zurich, and we have a second acquisition in Lausanne, center for pathologies, and those are going to remain on site. Now these are organizations that are kind of manageable. It's fewer than 50 people. And if we do not need to integrate them and if the process continues to work the way it does, it's going to work perfectly well.

So fact is we do not have one site, but our main site, our core site, say 90% still happens in Goldach. And to add something to this, particularly when we talk about the future, our targets and goals, then it's important to maintain this type of structure, which offers a huge strategic advantage of this one efficient site. And that allows us to integrate quickly any new acquisition that we'd make in the future. During the pandemic, we were slowly reaching the limits of our capacities. And that's one of the aspects why we decided to invest further. And we have made a huge effort in order to make sure that this volume -- this type of volume can be treated in Goldach.

Now an additional question. If you take over an additional lab, do you also take the client base or not really?

Well, no. Let's take the example of the center for hemostasis and thrombosis. It's the leading lab for hemostasiology, meaning for this type of pathology that exists elsewhere. But in this case, they are leaders. And so it's a doctor's office and the lab. And depending on the test, we can optimize what we do. Now the customer base is based everywhere in Switzerland, but the lab is in Zurich. And if the client is in Zurich, there's no point in transferring the results -- the tests to Goldach.

So it's a standard lab that you would take out, you would take over, you'd integrate it in Goldach?

We need to decide case base. That might be the logic, but there also might be reasons why we do that later or not at all.

How about the capacities in Goldach? Can you add further machines in case of incredible sudden growth?

Yes, we've already done that. The machines that you saw in the video, well, I can give you the approximate numbers. Before we had them, we had reached 60% to 70% of our volume for back then. And we have added 50% in terms of volume. So from 70%, we are now effectively on 80% in terms of free capacities and free volume. And then obviously, we can still make more and get additional machines if needed.

Okay. Excellent. Let's start in the middle. No, let's continue here because you have the mic.

Yes. Did -- you made the calculation in terms of capacity. So we're talking about CHF 14 million turnover up to CHF 200 million with the existing infrastructure. Is that correct?

That question is not simple, and I did not make this type of calculation. I'd say this is approximately correct. And that depends also on the question whether we have a routine or specialty.

How about the margins? Do we need to think that with each additional Swiss franc, there's going to be a positive impact in terms of margin? And could you tell us where about the margins are, like globally, Switzerland speaking, like Swiss speaking in that industry?

So if anyone has an answer, I'll pass you the mic.

Well, within the market, and we saw it Labor Team is top efficient. And it does hold the benchmark within the trade, but we cannot give you any numbers, generally speaking. If we look just at Labor Team within its context and with its actual charge, then we have an EBIT margin of about 20% and EBITDA on 15%. Now the question of the future is an actual good question because on the one hand, we have regulations, lawmakers. And I might anticipate something because yesterday, our Federal Council, Ms. Schneider has announced a package of cost reduction.

We were expecting it as part of actual common sense, which is needed, and that happens in anticipation of the review of the actual list -- analysis lists and the new prices. So on the one hand, we lower margins. But when we look into the future, the fact is that small labs are going to have difficulties to follow up, and they'll have difficulties to raise the volume that they're dealing with. So these are the 2 variables that we see. On the one hand, we have the potential to have more volume or manage more volume. And on the other hand, there is obviously the context.

Now given with what was communicated yesterday, we do think that it's not going to improve our margins. If we say roughly 20% or 15%, which I've mentioned, that's probably the level that we're at for the next years.

Maybe one last question and the question whether that has an impact on the margins. But if we do send a result on the machine, then -- now I forgot what I wanted to say, does the market grow structurally within Switzerland? Or is it more additional market shares that will allow you that growth?

Well, it is a market where we push each other out.

What do you mean structural growth?

The fact that there's more and more tests that are run globally speaking. Obviously, it's a mix. There are more tests, more analysis and -- more analysis that need to be done. But it is a -- it's a market that pushes and where we push each other out. That's a fact. And I think I've shown that in my presentation.

Thank you so much. Let's continue in the middle. And afterwards, we continue and take questions from the webcast, if there are any.

Thank you so much. My first question concerns security. And we saw that in terms of IT, there have been cyber attacks, which did have massive impact. What's your structure? What's your take on this?

It's a very important question. I've been there for 4.5 years, and we did raise our levels of IT securities time and again. But we do have daily attacks. But nevertheless, despite these attacks, we did not have any incident. It's obviously a subject where we need to invest that we need to promote and that's particularly important when it comes to the healthcare system.

Second question, there's going to be a probably split between specialty and routine testing, which is something that you've mentioned. I know that there's no clear definition, but maybe both definition would still be helpful. And if you could define those 2 parts.

Well, that's a complex question when it comes to specialty and routine. And we can look at it from different angles. It could be seen from like the side of the machine that does the work or when we look at the clinical side of a test. It's not that clearly defined within that industry. I'd say it's 1/3, 2/3. And we mustn't forget that there's pathology, which as such is a specialty. But within the specialty, there's also routine cases. So I'd say 1/3, 2/3.

Okay. Wonderful. And my last question in terms of long-term margins, if we look at those 10% that we saw within the last years, how much -- how long will it take you to reach that target, because when we talk about 10%, and it's quite significant? But if we calculate it for margin, it will probably cut it in half. How much time would you need to counteract this kind of movement?

Yes, we saw that during the last tariff adoption. And obviously, we could feel the impact, but we were able to digest it. So it might go down 1 year and then go up again the year after. It depends on the impact in the end, and it depends on the size of it. But we mustn't forget that the small labs are probably going to disappear. Now if we say 10%, that would be absolutely dramatical for the small labs, but that volume has to go somewhere. So we'll be at least at 10% of the volume or more. So we come out winning. And we expect further price cuts in the future.

That's just part of it. That's part of the context and of our framework, and that's how we plan. And in combination in terms of the volume, we will be able to compensate the loss of margins or at least partially compensate. And I'd like to add that it's important in terms of pathology and lab medicines 2 different tariffs, which makes it possible to better manage the risks related to each.

All right. I heard and I come back for additional questions, but we do have 3 questions in the webcast. Yes, that's a record for today. I have several questions by Sebastian Vogel who is with UBS. Question number one, how stable have these margins been over the past 3 to 4 years? Second, what's the capacity in the core lab? And third, how about the regulatory environment over the coming 2 to 3 years?

Well, that's 3 completely different questions. Allow me to get back the stability, yes. That's a complex question because we just started out with new operations. So of course, we boosted our margins with that. But you have to have a look at each and every sector. We used to have the clinical pathology and immunology as separate, and they're now together. So it's quite hard to answer that question.

Well, on margins, the important thing that I should say, we could tend to have a look at individual technical department, but the reality is more complex. You have to measure according to the profitability of each customer. So if you have a medical doctor with a higher volume, that's a more attractive customer. And of course, in the focus of our customer relations. And to give you a gastroenterologist, they do biopsies and the blood samples go to the lab, but that's mix. So you have to look at one order really.

Okay. Two more questions on the webcast I hear. Yes. Next question from Miro Zuzak from JMS Investment and it's about synergies. So whether strategic or those synergies exist between Labor Team and the pharmacies?

Well, in the pharmacy sector, of course, synergies are possible and we have them on our list. But when realizing synergy, we're focusing, first and foremost, on the obvious thing, the link to the medical doctors where we have those interfaces with the customers. And going forward, of course, we have further development in the services and pharmacies. So there's quite a lot of idea in the combination with test opportunities or checkups or blood sampling for medical doctors. So it's not -- it's all about the capacities there, and we have the potential in pharmacies. But still, that's subject to regulatory change and the services in pharmacies are still in the beginning phase, but we're focusing on the first obvious synergies.

And the last question before we continue to our next topic. You had a question there, yes.

Just to clarify really. Are there any white spaces or in your lab potential? Or are you offering everything? Or is there room for expansion?

That's also a complex question because theoretically, those white spaces will always been there for future tests that we are not even aware of that they exist today. Molecular biology brings to mind. So many things are happening there, but both the management, Board and we have really good connections with the companies in that field. So basically, we're covering everything, as I showed you at 99% -- 99.5% even is what we're dealing with. And that's going to remain the case.

We have yet another question from the webcast. That's the very last question. Yes, [ Ian Whitmore ] from [indiscernible]. And he's asking in terms of the pharmacy testing, what's the cost advantage that you expect from that?

Well, right now, I must admit it's a small percentage. really. We haven't even measured that separately. But the synergy potentials for pharmacies, we'll have to see, we'll have to develop that together and define the use cases to go with.

All right. Thank you. That completes this Q&A. Thank you very much along to you. Very fascinating insights. And save the best for last, as they say, Julian, the floor is all yours now for the market and the insight into the regulatory environment and the financials.

Thank you, Iris. And I would now like to take the opportunity to thank the colleagues for the exciting presentations and the insight into our business. And I'd like to seize this opportunity to talk about the market, give you an outlook of the regulatory environment and our financial key figures.

The past few years, we saw a quite benign market environment with constant, stable growth rates. And to advance on that, that's the dynamism that we are expecting for the coming years. There are 3 markets that are especially relevant for us. That's pharmaceuticals and medication. Consumer healthcare market is second and new, the diagnostics market for lab services. The most relevant one is pharmaceuticals, and that market grew constantly between 3% and 5% a year over the past 5 years. So volumes grew because people get older, but that's not the driver for growth.

Higher prices were drivers for growth because of new innovation. We saw that with the GLP-1 drugs last year. We expect that trend to continue. For Consumer Healthcare, the market has been rather flat. So OTC over the past few years increased slightly and non-medication, we have seen a flattened, slightly decreasing trend given the higher competition by mass retail and online. We expect that trend to continue. And as you heard from Alain for Diagnostics, we expect higher volumes given that the consumer are more health aware, get a lot of information about new tests and checkups and the trend for more evidence-based medicine for medical doctors.

So an attractive market with stable demand and growth due to new innovation. Let us lay that out with the regulatory environment. We're in a regulated business. A large part of our sales is based on regulated prices. 56% in the pharmacies, 70% in wholesale are based on prescription drugs, but also a large part of diagnostic services and a part of medical products for the home care market are subject to regulation, to price regulation. And last year, if you have a look at that, there were 3 types of initiatives that were dealt with.

On the one hand, the initiative to drive down costs, quite obviously, so many discussions around that. So it's prices of drugs, 1/3 of all medication prices are being reviewed and lowered. You're familiar with that. That's a standard process that is going to continue. Then there was the motion doubler which would have seen that the health insurances would have reimbursed medication from abroad, the territorial principle, but that's off the table because the Council of States voted that down.

When it comes to home care, that's Bichsel, clinical nutrition, there's a system change coming our way, starting at the earliest in 2027. In Bichsel, home care services were fully been compensated via the product margin will lower that, but we'll have a component compensating for that. So all in all, the effects are not yet too clear. But for Galenica, we expect that to be a neutral effect. And the last point is labs. So 2 important points. So [indiscernible] will be launched in January 2026. That will be a neutral thing for Labor Team, and that's the positive thing. And the second thing, there is an adaptation of the analysis list with a price reduction starting in January 2027 as was communicated yesterday.

We expected that when acquiring Labor Team. One essential point on rates and fees that the service-based remuneration # 5, which was approved, which is positive. So we're no longer in a state where there are no contracts. We can now plan ahead. So generally, all these changes have to be cost neutral for Galenica that LOA V is a slight opportunity because we've concentrated on blistering with Medicfilm and automated blistering will be compensated for in the future.

And the last point, the initiatives on digitization of healthcare. The first point, OTC liberalization, and we've mentioned it will come our way at the earliest in 2029. Then there is DigiSanté, an intensive discussion on further digitization of healthcare, and we're quite active in the associations there. The project is also supposed to boost e-medication, that's e-prescription, but also eMediplan. Those are all initiatives that we strongly support. So you can see quite a lot of discussion, a bit of a risk when it comes to regulators, in part, opportunities for Galenica, but we can manage all of these topics that we've discussed, we believe.

Before getting to the guidance, let me have a look at the reporting. With the acquisition of Labor Team, we've sat down and really thought hard about how to show Labor Team sales in our annual financials. And we also called into question what we're doing now. In the future, there will be -- continue to be 4 business areas. Pharmacy's omnichannel, number one. So online and brick-and-mortar together, that is in line with our strategy as omnichannel player. There are so many initiatives that you heard about Click and Collect, e-prescriptions. That has to do with good interaction between on and offline. And that is why we'll be showing the sales together.

Second, products and brands, unchanged essentially. Then services and production that used to be services and professional has now been developed further. So Bichsel Home Care, Life stage and Medifair as well as the production at Bichsel. We actively decided against a separate home care area because an essential element of our home care strategy, medication is not included in these companies. And fourth, we have transparent show of sales for diagnostics. Logistics and IT, one adaptation will only show the sales to third parties that has created value. External that used to be a group internal IT services, but that takes us back to the profitability in the segment because that could be -- boost the margin. And that's why that will lower the profitability slightly.

Let's have a look at the guidance now, shall we? For the half year, we increased the guidance so plus 3% to 5% sales growth unchanged. EBIT, 7% to 9% in growth now that we've acquired Labor Team, EBIT and sales will go up. So 4% to 6% in net sales and the EBIT guidance has been increased to 10% to 12%. The important thing to mention here that the 10% to 12% means that the acquisition-related depreciation and amortization on intangible assets is not increased.

Besides that, our dividend guidance is going to be unchanged with at least constant dividends. Two years ago, we have published a medium-term guidance for the year 2027 so our 100th anniversary. So it's not the time now to discuss a new medium-term guidance, but the time is right to take stock and see where we stand today in terms of the communicated targets as they were defined 2 years ago. During the last medium-term guidance, we had 5 targets in 5 areas. First of all, market growth as key planning assumption. In this case, this has materialized, and we have reached -- I mean, we have communicated 3% to 5% as a baseline, and that's what happened.

In the future, we continue using this baseline as it seems the best evaluation possible. We then have specific targets in terms of profitability per segment. Products & Care, we have a goal of a profitability of 9.5% and beyond. This target is going to be reached without inclusion of Labor Team. As I've said, we believe that thanks to Labor Team, this margin is going to be increased. So we still don't know exactly how much that depends also on the regulatory context.

In logistics and IT, we do have a margin of up to 2%, which were communicated. It is obvious that after a successful implementation of the ERP in logistics, the margin is going to increase, and we are gaining in terms of efficiency. Because of the reclassification of internal IT, which I've mentioned, we will not quite reach the target of 2%. The third point was definitely the most important KPI. It was a goal in terms of EBIT of CHF 250 million. We will achieve this target even without including the Labor Team. We are going to achieve this, thanks to a clear focus on cost and efficiency. In recent years, we have established professional structures, particularly in IT.

Now it is a matter of curbing this cost related to growth and achieving efficiency in terms of the gains. Then debt ratio, we have a target of cutting it by a factor 2. After the acquisition of Labor Team, nevertheless, we are going to even be higher than that, and we're talking about 2.3 or 2.4 in total. We do not feel that this needs immediate action because as time goes by, that value is going to decrease.

In terms of dividends, things remain unchanged, and we apply the guidance of stable dividends between the present year and this year, which is going to increase as the earnings do. As you can see, we're on track with our medium-term guidance, and we are confident that we will achieve our ambitious targets.

Thank you so much, Julian. Thank you.

And this brings us to our final round of Q&A. Marc, you're with us again, and we're going to open up for your questions. Please ask away.

Just a quick question in terms of EBIT guidance or margin guidance. Where are we at in terms of return of investment is up to 2% that you've mentioned? How do we need to read this? Is it the absolute minimum, 1.8% as baseline or minimum or 1.9%? Is there a specific target?

No. We obviously try to reach 2% for as much as possible. And we said up to 2% because we knew that this is the absolute benchmark when it comes to this matter. And that's why we did not announce 2% as a direct goal. But now with our internal IT, the development of it all, we have reached a level of 1.5%. And in that sense, 1.8%, 1.9% is a really good guideline or target line.

Maybe let's take a second question. In terms of the debt ratio, as you said, it's a bit higher than the factor 2 you announced. And we -- you are looking into further acquisition. Is there a chance that in the end and in the long run, it's going to be above those 2%? And I'd also like to add something in terms of Redcare and the joint venture. How is it going? Are you satisfied? Have you reached what you have wanted when you decided to proceed with this fusion?

Yes. Thank you so much for this question. Obviously, the debt ratio depends on 2 components, 2 possibilities in the end to improve it, either we lower the debt or we raise the EBIT. Ideally, obviously, it's second. But it's obvious also that when we find new acquisition and we find a big attractive target, then there might be measures in terms of capital in the joint venture. But what's important in the actual structure with smaller acquisition, we do not see an immediate need for action.

Then in terms of Redcare, I have to say that the partnership is excellent. We are very happy with what was reached in Switzerland. The collaboration is excellent. The contact within Redcare works well. They have excellent growth. And in terms of profitability, we do see that this is a full success. And we also find that the collaboration with the staff at Redcare is rich, very comfortable. We're extremely confident and positive in terms of the further and future development. The strategy with the online channel, having somebody who's got this online channel within their DNA is that definitely pays in terms of the strategy.

Any other questions? Yes.

Here, my first question in terms of EBIT. Is that going to be adjusted in terms of the acquisition of Labor Team? Is that going to have an impact in terms of the EBIT?

Well, we have seen it. The numbers that we need to deliver in terms of regulation of immaterial value and the calculations behind it are hard to understand, which is why we considered to clear it up in order to actually show the added value, the real added value.

And when we receive the statements in terms of this new structure?

The new structure is going to be kicked off in '28, and we are going to adapt the periods which we use for comparison.

We do have a question online, Florian. Yes, a question from Sebastian Vogel from UBS. Why did you not adopt the midterm guidance despite Labor Team?

Well, that's a good point, and I would have liked to adapt it, but one important point was confirmed yesterday in terms of the communication by the confederation. There is a huge insecurity in terms of regulation. And we do think that margin is going to be increased and that the profitability of 9.5% cannot be considered a baseline depending on where it goes. Globally speaking, we'll see what can be added to the price calculation. Right now, we're at a profitability of roughly 15%. We do think that it's not going to drop anywhere beyond 9.5%. And between all of that, mathematically speaking, a lot of options are possible.

Right. Anyone else would like to ask a question. Maybe a question about home care because we have not talked about this in depth today. Does it remain a growth market? And what's the priority?

We do see it as a growth market, and it remains within our main focus. Marc has mentioned it this morning. It's something that's deeply anchored in our strategy. And we have been reorganizing this area within our group and with our partners. And we will have a platform for this kind of products and services, obviously, which will be a joint market development.

Excellent. So last call for your last questions. And if not, the time has come to say goodbye. And Marc, you have the stage in order to sum up and end this meeting.

Yes. Thank you so much, Iris. Thanks all of you for having participated today. Thank you for your questions and for the discussions we were able to have during breaks. Let's pass the mic on to Julian.

Thank you. Well, I hope that today, you have gained some new perspectives on Galenica and have a clear vision of where Galenica stands within its transformation. Marc said it this morning at the beginning of the day. Our transformation is based on a strong corporate culture as well as the active involvement of all employees. We are not developing this transformation because it's fun, but we do want to have the tools in order to develop our activities further. And we want to be the first point of contact for anything related to health and advice.

We are continuously developing our range of advisory services by counting on qualified and motivated staff and by constantly improving the customer experience. All of these initiatives are here so that we can inspire our customers and gain market share for a sustainable and profitable growth. Then Thomas talked about consumer healthcare through targeted investment and innovation. Thanks to Verfora, we have the leading consumer platform in Switzerland, and we are continuing to focus on expanding these new channels and a sustainable supply chain.

We then had Andy Koch, who will talk to us about wholesale and logistics. In that area, we are increasing our efficiency and thus, security of supply through automation and digitalization. We have new partners and we will gain in terms of efficiency, thanks to those new automated systems. And finally, thanks to the acquisition of Labor team, we were able to enter into the diagnostics business, thanks to a highly efficient team in Goldach, which is now part of the Galenica network by opening up a new field of growth.

We are convinced that we have the right strategy. We are going to focus on a consistent strategy in order to remain the leading service health provider in Switzerland. It now is time to thank you, Iris, for hosting today's event and with so much charm. I'd also like to thank our communication teams and Investor Relations teams because without you, such a day would not be possible. A big thank you to our technicians who put us in the right light and spotlight. And a big thanks to you, dear investors, analysts and guests. Thank you for your trust in us. Thank you for your participation, your interesting questions, and thank you for taking time to engage with Galenica.

We are just on time. And to end this all, I have the pleasure to now invite you to the guided tour in the [ Stathouse ]. Marc and myself are going to participate, and [ Celia Bachmann ] is going to be our guide. We will have this 30-minute guided tour before having an imperative in order to share additional time for discussions and questions. Please take your personal items with you because this room is going to be cleaned out. Thank you so much. And I'm looking forward to seeing you now.

[Statements in English on this transcript were spoken by an interpreter present on the live call.]

Dear members of the media, dear guests, a very warm welcome to our media and analyst conference for the first half of 2025. Our CEO, Marc Werner, is going to give you an update on our strategy before we then take a look at the figures for the first half year. And of course, we'll be available for questions afterwards.

Thank you, Julian. Ladies and gentlemen, so wonderful that you found the time to take part in this conference call. Allow me to start off with a quick look back at the past half year, which advance on it -- went well. Over the first 6 months of 2025, we consistently continued our growth strategy in a positive market environment and strengthened our market position further.

Once more, we posted a strong 5% growth in sales. And beyond that, during the first half, we managed a clear-cut increase in profitability, and we saw major improvements in cash flow. So we are confirming our guidance for sales with a growth of between 3% and 5%, and the dividend at least on the previous year par. Due to a strong first half growth and positive one-off effects, we are increasing the EBIT outlook from 4% to 6% to 7% to 9%. Our CFO, Julian Fiessinger, will give you more details as to the figures right after that.

Let us talk about the first half year milestones. We have a broad-based portfolio of integrated solutions and a strong focus on the needs of our patients and customers. That is how we leave our mark in the development of our health care system. We have strengthened our position in the market once more, have come up with innovative services and implemented efficiency gains. Also, we were able to announce we've entered the diagnostics business.

Allow me to single out these highlights. In the first half year of 2025, the Galenica network grew by a net 5 pharmacies to a total of 381 locations and has continued to expand its presence in all the Swiss linguistic regions. Amavita reached a special milestone in its 20th year when opening the 200th Amavita pharmacy in Morbio Inferiore. Galenica opts for informed pharmaceutical consultations and the initiative Consultation plus. The demand for in-pharmacy consultations and health services has continued to grow at a 16%-plus. Consultations have increased both for acute pain and when it comes to prevention health checks or vaccination.

OneDoc enables customers to make online appointments in more than 90% of Galenica's pharmacies now. We're also pleased to see that parliament passed the second cost containment package in March of this year. This package is acknowledging and strengthening the pharmacy skill further. In the future, additional preventative and interprofessional services rendered by pharmacies will be remunerated directly by basic insurance.

One of our core topics focuses on a consistent increase of digitization in the health care system. We're doing that with our own solution that we develop ourselves as well as through cooperation with our industry partners. In February 2025, we launched our Prescription Manager. That is a new omnichannel solutions for our customers and patients to manage their permanent prescriptions online and reorder medication digitally for home delivery, or pickup in a selective pharmacy.

More than 10,000 people are already using that service and the number is rising steadily. Patients with chronic illness, especially who need medicine on a regular basis, find valuable support in that digital service. When it comes to patient safety, one of our most crucial goals now and in the future, digital help is essential. Our expert, HCI Solutions is one of the crucial trendsetters in that field. HCI acted as a competent partner to support, for instance, the professional associations, FMH and pharmaSuisse, when e-prescriptions were launched. As many as 6,000 e-prescriptions a month are already being issued via Documedis.

Another contribution to patient safety are the Clinical Decision Support checks, CDS. They help health care staff check patients' medication. More than 240 million CDS checks have been carried out since the beginning of the year, up 38% on the previous period. We can also report a pleasant growth and progress when implementing efficiency boosting measures in logistics also for the first half of the year. In our wholesale business area, we managed to win further market share in the first 6 months, both pharmacy wholesale and also with medical doctors.

In March 2025, we also implemented the crucial ERP system switch at our Lausanne-Ecublens location. In the second half of 2025, the focus will now be on continuously increasing our efficiency and fully supplying our customers in the west of Switzerland from our Lausanne-Ecublens location. Our pre-wholesale expert, Alloga, already went through the ERP switchover in 2024, which translated into an efficiency boost in the first half of this year.

Since January 2025, Verfora has exclusively marketed the products of Cooper Consumer Health, among them the former [indiscernible] OTC products. They're well-known OTC brands like, for instance, Kamillosan or [indiscernible], but also prescription brands like Duphalac or Legalon. Verfora managed to strengthen their consumer health business and expand their offer for specialists, pharmacies and drug stores. In figures, Verfora's market share in the consumer health care market was up to 11%.

The further development and promotion of brands Spagyros and PADMA also figured prominently in the first half of the year. Spagyros is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2025. Another development has taken place in home care. Bichsel Home Care and Lifestage Solutions will be bundling their strengths as of October 2025 and will create a powerful sales organization to cater to the home care market as a one-stop shop going forward. That is a meaningful step to pinpointly develop the broad home care service portfolio and to gear it even more towards the needs of our customers and patients.

Together, in one sales organization, we will support care home and outpatient home care organizations when caring for patients' individual needs revolving around clinical nutrition and the supply of consumable materials. Bichsel Home Care has year-long technical expertise and a well-established network, while Lifestage brings the digital platform to the mix. To flesh out the network spirit even more efficiently, the safe and efficient availability of medication is crucial, and we can provide that through our pharmacies.

All in all, we can say that our networks spirit has come to be well established across our entire company and has become a crucial success factor in cooperation within the Galenica Group as well as with external partners. Our corporate culture is characterized by active participation and a high degree of responsibility. Our leadership approach is one servant leadership. That way, we get ever more efficient, innovative and increase our attraction as an employer. Latter is, for instance, illustrated by the fact that for many of our jobs vacancies, we get excellent applications today. Also, many of our top positions were filled internally. For instance, recently, the General Counsel, where Cecile Matter is going to succeed Barbara Walchli as per November 2025. Our progress in canvassing talents was recently recognized by the official Swiss Best Recruiters ranking. We're now among the top 30, and we managed to improve by more than 100 ranks on the previous year.

Another milestone that we're especially looking forward to in the second half of 2025 is the launch of our Diagnostics business that we announced in July 2025 when acquiring the Labor Team Group. This will help us continue on our growth path and will boost our health care network with a new business area, Galenica Diagnostics. The acquisition is strengthening our portfolio in the doctor segment and will, in the long run, open up potential for added pharmacy services in the field of diagnostics. Labor Team fits the strategy and culture of Galenica to a T. Together, we intend to push for health care innovations.

The acquisition is the result of a longer strategic project where we analyze possible fields for development that would flank out our portfolio ideally. And we managed to seize the opportunity with Labor Team Group is also the result of meticulous planning and the network buildup effort. In future, Labor Team will be led as the individual business area, Galenica Diagnostics. The old management will continue to bear operational responsibility and will continue to write Labor Team's success story together with more than 330 personnel.

The Board of Directors is also opting for continuity and will staff it with lab competency and management competency from the Galenica Group. The transaction is subject to the approval of the Swiss Competition Commission, COMCO, And Is Expected for the Second Half of the Year.

To sum up, we can say thanks to a sustainable and clear cut strategy, its consistent implementation and a unique business model, we've managed to continue to play a major role in the Swiss health care market. was also rewarded on the stock market given the very positive development of the Galenica share in the stock market over the first half of 2025. We'd like to thank you and our partners for your trust in us. And we'd like to thank all our staff who, day after day, are giving it their all for the health and well-being of the people in Switzerland.

And I'd like to now pass the floor to Julian.

Thank you, Marc. Before I present the half year figures, let's take a closer look at the diagnostics market and the acquisition of Labor Team. What is Labor Team? Labor Team is a private medical laboratory. So we are in the field of laboratory diagnostics. The range of services includes basic tests such as blood and urine analyses as well as advanced diagnostics, including cytological and histological in the oncological field, molecular genetic analyses and tissue tests.

The Swiss laboratory market is worth around CHF 3 billion. Around 1/4 is accounted for by hospital laboratories, a further 1/4 by physician labs that is tests carried out directly by physicians and around half, that is CHF 1.4 billion, by private medical laboratories. The market is subject to the familiar trends in the health care sector. So on the one hand, we have the cost pressure or scaling pressure due to expected reductions in rates. This increases the pressure on poorly utilized or less automated laboratories and leads to market consolidation.

The trend towards outpatient care more and more with more treatments outside of the hospital will intensify this effect. We, therefore, expect private labs to gain market share within the laboratory market compared to physician and hospital labs. The market for private medical laboratories has already consolidated considerably in recent years. The 4 largest labs account for around 2/3 of the market. So it was, therefore, the last opportunity for Galenica to enter the laboratory market.

Labor Team is #4 with a market share of 8%. The clear leader is the Australian laboratory group, Sonic, followed by Unilabs and [indiscernible] with smaller laboratories accounting for around 1/3. The Swiss laboratory market is a growth market and has developed steadily over the past 10 years with an average growth rate of 3% to 4%. As far as future developments are concerned, we expect the market to continue to grow. Although price pressure will continue, there was last price reduction in 2022 with more to follow in 2026 and 2027.

In future, too, we expect there will be price pressure and regular price adjustments. However, when we talk about volume, demand is increasing due to population growth, the aging population, greater health awareness and ever new testing options. There's a lot of innovation available in the market. For this reason, we assume that despite constant price pressure, we will see a market growth in future, too.

A key question that we have analyzed in the diagnostics sector is the success factor in the market. So what does it take to win in this market? To convince our customers, to win over customers, we need 3 skills: First, excellence in service, which also includes a user-friendly IT connection; secondly, we need a wide range of tests on offer; and lastly, speed. How quickly do the results arrive? How reliable is the gathering of the information? How efficient is the logistics and how automated is the test process.

So to be cost efficient in this market, we need to consider the scaling effect. That is to say we need a high degree of automation combined with high capacity utilization, which will make us successful in the face of increasing cost pressure. We believe that Labor Team is very strongly positioned in this environment. First, Labor Team offers a large test range. Second, Labor Team has a very high degree of automation combined with efficient and sustainable logistics. The samples are collected from the doctors by bicycle courier, transported by the Swiss railway services to eastern Switzerland and analyzed in the central laboratory in Goldach in a state-of-the-art facility.

The test tubes are there on conveyor belts. Robots bring the samples to the devices and the results are transmitted digitally. This ensures a very efficient process and laboratory results within 5 hours of collection of the data. So we have a very high turnaround time. It's clear we want to develop the business further together with Labor Team management and also want to continue to grow; on the one hand, inorganically through the acquisition of other smaller laboratories; and on the other hand, we also want to drive organic growth, where we hope to achieve synergies in conjunction with our strong Galenica network.

We can act as a door opener with GPs and specialists where we have a market share of some 31% in the sale of medicines. And this must certainly be our focus as a first step. All in all, we are convinced with Labor Team, we can significantly improve our range of services for physicians and thus be seen as an even more relevant partner. In the long term, however, our broad pharmacy network will also offer points of contact and potential for synergies in combination with the health care services we offer. However, we might need some regulatory adjustments in the field here. So therefore, we are convinced, deeply convinced that with Labor Team and our entry into the diagnostics business, we now have the opportunity to help shape an exciting growth market.

So let's now turn to our business update to our half year results of 2025. And let's start with the market update. The pharmaceutical market grew by 4.8% in the first half of the year. Growth in the first half of the year was driven by a high demand for prescription drugs, including GLP-1-based weight loss products and drugs in connection with a strong flu epidemic at the beginning of the year. Local pharmacies, in particular, benefited from the growth this year with strong growth of 5.2%. The physicians channel grew by 4.4%, while the hospital channel also grew strongly at 5.1%.

Growth in the first half of 2025 is significantly higher than in the same period last year despite 1 fewer day of sales. In the previous year, the Federal Office of Public Health measures to promote generic substitution and in particular, a weak June had significantly slowed growth.

Let's now turn to the consumer health care market. This is always dependent on seasonal effects, this year, too. OTC segment with all the traditional range like cough and flu suffered in the second half of last year and saw a flat growth of 0.5%. However, non-medication range in pharmacies and drug stores is up to the degree of 0.8% this year, particularly due to the sunny early summer with sales of sunscreen products. In this friendly market environment, we achieved growth of 5% with both the Products & Care, 4.6% and logistics and IT, 5.5%. That also contributed to our growth.

So let's now take a closer look at the main drivers. Our local pharmacies grew by 5.4%, which is a combination of good organic growth and successful expansion. We increased our pharmacy network by a net 5 locations, which had a 1.8% impact on sales growth. The organic growth of the local pharmacies thus amounted to 3.6%, which means that we developed roughly in line with the market. Growth was driven by high demand for prescription medicines. In addition, the high demand of nutritional supplements, dermatological products in the area of sun protection also developed well, which is very welcome.

In the field of Products & Brands, in this division, we achieved a slight growth of 0.9% in the first half of 2025 with sales growth of 5.3% in the Swiss market and a decline of 12.6% in exports. This decline in sales is due to the exceptionally high prior year sales in connection with the one-off buildup of bridging stock inventories as a result of regulatory adjustments in the European Union. Sales growth in the Swiss market was supported by the product of Cooper Consumer Health, whose distribution, Verfora, has been responsible since the beginning of the year.

Wholesale grew strongly by 5.6%, outperforming market growth of 4.8%. In particular, when it comes to the doctor segment with a growth of 5.8% and in the pharmacy segment with growth of 5.6%. So we were able to gain further market share here.

Now let's take a look at profitability. In the first half of 2025, EBIT was influenced by positive special factors, one-off factors amounting to CHF 5.4 million. Without these effects, adjusted EBIT would have risen by 5.4%. This is due to competition proceedings for which expenses were recognized in 2023. The sanctions from these proceedings are now significantly lower than originally assumed with a correspondingly positive effect on the logistics and IT division. Adjusted for this effect, the EBIT margin remained constant in both segments.

Investment decreased in the first half of 2025 compared to the previous year. This is primarily due to a timing effect. For the overall year of 2025, we continue to expect an investment volume of between CHF 70 million and CHF 80 million. Cash flow changed very positively in the first half of the year, which is a combination of 3 factors: First, a strong operating result; second, as I've just mentioned, low capital expenditure in the first half of 2025; and thirdly, a clear focus on net working capital.

We continue to have a strong balance sheet. Adjusted net debt ratio remained stable compared to the previous year. The debt ratio at the end of the first half of the year was 1.9. As to the guidance, we confirm the 2025 outlook for consolidated net results -- net sales, excuse me, that is to say, growth of 3% to 5% and the dividend at least on par with the previous year. Due to the positive one-off effects of CHF 5.4 million, we now expect EBIT growth of between 7% and 9%. Previously, growth of between 4% and 6% was expected.

The acquisition of Labor Team is not yet included in the outlook as the closing date of the transaction has not yet been set. So Galenica had a successful first half year. We are clearly on track with our medium-term guidance and are entering the second half year with a tailwind. So much for the results. We are now looking forward to answering your questions.

Gian-Marco Werro has asked a question.

Two questions from me on Labor Team, if I may. First, now that you've talked about the sales. Could you give us a feel what kind of EBIT you are going to generate for the company? So that should be about CHF 15 million to CHF 16 million in EBIT. That's a bit optimistic, I think, and also the realization costs, how much would they amount to?

Second, you also mentioned that the new business area will also be developing by inorganic growth. Do you have any goals as to how many millions you are going to invest in the future buying private labs?

Thank you, Gian-Marco, for your questions. On Labor Team, yes, in 2024, Labor Team came up with CHF 114 million. And I have to say that it's a dynamic environment also. And you can see that also from the web pages. So they gained new customers. So we expect a dynamic sales development in 2025.

Now on the EBITDA, on profitability, there were a few figures between 17% and 20% by analysts. And that's a good range, I believe. And in terms of the EBIT profitability, that will always strongly depend on the adaptations of the purchase price allocation. So I cannot give you a statement at this moment in time. The acquisition costs have been quite low, about CHF 1 million.

In terms of the inorganic growth that you mentioned, we'll have to see. So we'll really team up with the Labor Team and management directly. We're trying to really follow the activities in the market, and we haven't yet established a budget for that yet. But of course, we want to opt for growth and want to see reasonable acquisitions in the market.

Now you said CHF 1 million, but what was the final price value? I would be interested in hearing that if that is possible.

The enterprise value of the entire acquisition, well, there were assumptions between CHF 240 million and CHF 260 million, and we know that, that is a good range.

Sebastian Vogel with UBS.

Hope you can hear me.

Yes, we can hear you.

Wonderful. Apologies. Products & Brands on the Swiss part, not the international part, if I may. Now if I've calculated that directly on a monthly basis. During the first 4 months, that was CHF 14 million on average in sales and in May and June, CHF 11 million on average. So that went down 23% sequentially. You said that the market environment was difficult. So you might want to elaborate on that, if you can. So could you drill down a bit? That would be my first question.

The second question on the guidance, 3% to 5% -- so you already came up with a 5% during the first half. Now what are the building blocks that you have to have the 3% and also on the EBIT side, quite far ahead when it comes to the growth. So what would have to happen for the second year?

And my third question. Now in terms of the capital, you said that you made good progress. So you're on the right track in the EBIT side. And would things return to normal? Or what would you envisage for the future? Those are my three questions.

Thank you, Sebastian. Yes, you saw that correctly. In May and June, we saw a downturn in sales and products and brands. Of course, that has to do with the fact that we do not have linear sales just like in retail, it hinges on orders. And as we saw in the market in the second quarter, there was a clear downturn in the segment when it comes to the influenza or cough or something like that, which is where we are strong and lower order volume for Verfora. That's why temporarily, we generated lower sales and had a stronger effect for that short period. But we do not see that as a sustainable trend for the entire year.

Then on the guidance, quite obviously, the target would have to be that we end up with more than 3% at the end of the year. So now 5%, why not higher? Well, we need to have a like-for-like basis for the second half. So the 5% plus will be more difficult to achieve than in the first half. Now the drivers for that to come to the 3% downside case is market dynamics, which is based on different causes, various causes. But in general, we do not believe right now that we'll end up at the lower range. Then on the net working capital, we would say that we've created sustainable effect, not a onetime effect.

A follow-up, if I may...

Sorry, the gentleman is breaking up. Sebastian, can I interrupt you? You're breaking up. Please restate your question. You were breaking up.

Yes, on the EBIT guidance, I had a question. What would it take?

Well, we'll clarify that later on. Now I think I understood what you -- now on the EBIT development in general, so the add-on background that I should mention for the first half. And now in the first half, we saw the gross margin slightly down, has to do with the product mix with more expensive drugs, GLP-1 medications spring to mind, then the share of distribution product and branch, Cooper Consumer Health and strong growth for wholesale.

On the other hand, we compensated that slight downturn in the gross margin with excellent management of personnel costs that went down from 15.5% last year to 15.1% this year, especially because of the good personnel management in pharmacies. And these are the main 2 drivers that would drive EBIT in turn. Quite obviously, given that if there is a lack of sales dynamism, then EBIT will come under pressure. And the second part, that's what we are opting for ourselves, and that's personnel costs.

The next question, Jan Koch, Deutsche Bank.

I hope you can hear me.

Yes, we can hear you.

I have three questions. The first question, the Labor Team. In the past, we've seen some price reductions in Switzerland in that field, and they had a negative bearing on the margin or possibly so. Could you see in the future further price reductions that are implemented than the permanent prescriptions? Is there competition between Galenica and MediService? And do competitors also offer this, might be difficult for smaller pharmacies, but maybe some of the chain pharmacies have that. And what about the potential of Galenica to make headway here?

Okay. First of all, the price reductions in the laboratory. You're right. It's a cyclical market. Every other year, there's a price reduction maybe, and they have a bearing on, of course, profitability. The last price reduction we saw in 2022. At that time, there was a 10% price cut on all the tests and price cuts over all tests was given by the Federal Office, for instance, the FOPH. Then in 2022, the vitamin D tests were only reduced to medical cases. And these cases certainly hit hard on the laboratory market, and they led to a market consolidation.

It is true. We expect some price adjustments here, in particular, for 2026 for the introduction of Target and the pathological aspects will also be hit, that's to say, some 15% to 20% of our sales. And in 2027, the [indiscernible] project is expected to come about by the Federal Office of Public Health. It's not really quite clear as in 2022, whether there will be a general price cut on all tests or whether certain aspects will be treated differently. But it's the tendency of the office to [indiscernible] reductions.

Yes. Indeed, for the second question, it's an important service, the MediService, certainly, that's a specialty area. So we do not really have a competition there with [indiscernible]. There is a certain competition, but that's always been our strategic aim to have something on site so that we can deal with things better. But we are really seeing that from a sportsman's point of view.

So private pharmacies have certainly a harder stance there, but they have other advantages. It's easier for them to retain customers and to defend their market position. And the other chains, they will also make similar products available. I just assumed that, but I am very convinced that we have a customer, a friendly product available and that we will see some major growth in the coming months and years.

The next question comes from Urs Kunz, Research Partners.

Maybe I can ask one question after the other. Labor Team first, whether it's right or wrong, they are not always met with the best reputation. On the one hand, very often, there is the complaint that the tests are too expensive complaint with the other countries that does not lead to major price reductions. And then there's the unfair competition complaint that physicians get some incentives that they send in all sorts of different tests. So entire physician offices that are being renovated, for instance. What about your point of view? What about your acquisition with Labor Team? Do you see certain risks there in this field?

Yes, indeed. The Labor Team Kodex is an essential aspect of due diligence, and we really thought to that. Labor Team, however, in the past few years, has had a strong cultural shift in this field. There is an FAMH Labor Kodex, Lab Kodex, but there's still some black sheep in the industry, and we always hear that. So this is certainly a topic to be considered in the framework of the regulatory framework. We want to make sure that we act according to the laws.

Yes, it's clear. It is a topic, but we within Galenica are compliant. We do our due diligence with management team of Labor Team and also with the management board, with the Board of Directors. There are clear rules that we see to, and we really focus on that.

As to the test prices, of course, it's a service business. We are in Switzerland here, and there is some competition from abroad. But we are quite clear. We will have to see that there is some price pressure. And we can only be successful if there is a high level -- degree of automation with a good user friendliness. And Labor Team made some good developments. They invested in a highly automated central lab connected with a good logistics chain, and we can only be successful also when we reduce prices in the future.

The second question regards EBIT margin. The ERP in Lausanne and like in other cases, seems to have had a negative bearing on the EBIT in 2024. In the second half, we've seen a better margin in this area. So these additional costs within the labs -- with Alloga last time and now with Galexis, are they also gone, that's to say, do you expect there to be an improvement? Or will they also play a role in the second half of 2025?

Well, the cost structure of 2025 second half, I cannot really predict that. It is clear. The shift in [indiscernible] has also led to efficiencies, greater efficiencies. There were normal challenges, which always in the ERP shift there, we've seen the stabilization of processes and have a good result here. But of course, we are working on the efficiency increase in the second half. And we stick to our midterm guidance that is to say a shift from ERP system in 2026 so that in 2027, we will have a fully efficient system.

So the shift will take place in 2026 and not 2027. So in 2026, we can count on certain costs, certainly and like [indiscernible], we also have to focus on the corresponding goals, and we will reach them. We are sure for that.

Maybe one further question. It's only Galexis that is being shifted or UFD or PharmaPool? There's nothing in the pipeline there?

No, it's Galexis certainly, but that's the main society, the biggest volume that we're talking about. [indiscernible], we had that shift in March. In 2026 March, we will have the [indiscernible] main location. At a later stage, it would also make sure that UFD and PharmaPool will shift to ERP, but that's a smaller business.

And my last question. [indiscernible] provision that was supposed to come in 2027. You mentioned the basic insurance will reimburse certain things. But the services offered in the pharmacies, will that be only reimbursed in part by the basic insurance? Or will all services in these pharmacies be reimbursed?

No, the services, the basic -- the basic has been met with the revision, but the services will have to be developed at a later stage. And it will take some time, some months maybe until we implement it. But Consultation Plus is in the Galenica Group. That's a step ahead. We know how we develop services, but we have to also add certain new services.

And the health insurance companies will have to deal with that. So therapies -- and therapy, trustworthy schemes, for instance, those who go to a doctor regularly that they can go to the pharmacy and be reimbursed the cost for such testing done in the pharmacy. That's what we will do. And this will also apply to the prescription medicines. That is to say the prescription can be issued in a pharmacy.

Is that maybe something that will be reimbursed in due course?

Well, in part, it is being paid for. And on that basis, the prescription can be issued by the pharmacy. But that is always something that you have to pay for yourselves. And it's quite clear if the service is paid for and if the medication is being reimbursed, then of course, that's something that the doctor stands behind.

That seems logical. That was clear. That was my question.

Next question from Laura Pfeifer-Rossi.

I'm with Octavian. I have two questions on Labor Team. First, could you give us an update on potential timing of the closing of the acquisition? Of course, you mentioned COMCO and you need the Ascent. Are there any complications that you're seeing? Or is that business as usual?

And question number two, market growth. Did I get you correctly that even in a year where there could be major cuts like in 2026 or '27, you still see a positive market growth or would the market even shrink? And in that context, I'd be interested in hearing a few indications whether the EBITDA margin could remain at the 17% to 20% margin or whether it would be under pressure.

Thank you for your questions. Now on the timing, everything is going according to plan. Of course, these processes do take some time. Now as Marc said, the closing would probably take place in the second half of the year, earlier rather than later. And on the market dynamics, as I said before, it's a cyclical market.

Now if we have a growth in profitability, then we're talking about the longer term. But short term wise, of course, if there is a price cut, sales will go down too because you cannot compensate for that in volume growth. And it's quite obviously that, that will have an effect on the EBIT margin that yes. So the price cuts and the compensation by boost in efficiency, that is the longer-term trend. But you can expect in a year of a price cut that there will be a certain degree of a downturn. But if you see that as a very long term, we see that as a very interesting market.

Right now, we do not have any further questions.

All right. Then thank you for participating in this conference call. I'd like to point out our Investor Day before we draw to a close. That's October 28, 2025. I do hope that you will join us then, and that completes this conference call. Thank you for participating.

[Statements in English on this transcript were spoken by an interpreter present on the live call.]