Celltrion Group Chairman Seo Jung-jin will spend the month of August visiting the company's overseas operations to strengthen second-half sales, the biopharmaceutical group said Tuesday.

Seo is scheduled to depart for Paris on Aug. 10 and travel sequentially through European countries before visiting major overseas subsidiaries in the United States, Canada and Japan to review the company's sales and revenue plans for the rest of the year.

The trip is intended to accelerate execution of second-half sales targets rather than serve as a routine visit to overseas units, the company said.

Seo will review market conditions by region, product-level sales, bidding and supply schedules, and plans to expand into new markets, while supporting rapid decision-making on issues raised in the field.

Celltrion said Seo will pay particular attention to sales synergy and strategy with local subsidiaries strengthened after the company's acquisitions of French health care company Gifrer and Swiss pharmaceutical distributor iQone.

He will also review the pharmacy distribution network across Europe as part of an effort to strengthen sales through both hospital and pharmacy channels — the two main distribution routes for pharmaceuticals. Celltrion has been expanding its direct pharmacy sales network in Europe in addition to its existing hospital- and procurement-focused direct sales system.

Seo, who canceled his summer vacation for the trip, plans to visit sites across Europe and other major overseas cities where extended heat waves have made working conditions difficult, meeting directly with sales staff on the front lines to hear and address local challenges, the company said.

Celltrion posted revenue of 2.5387 trillion won ($1.78 billion) and operating profit of 773.7 billion won in the first half of the year, up 40.8 percent and 97.4 percent, respectively, from a year earlier — the company's best-ever first-half results.

Celltrion attributed the growth to stable sales of existing products, growth in high-margin follow-on products and the advancement of its global direct sales system.

High-margin new products, including Remsima SC — a subcutaneous injection formulation of the biosimilar drug infliximab — accounted for about 65 percent of total revenue.

During the August trip, Seo plans to review regional sales strategies, market-share expansion plans and plans to launch products in additional countries.

Celltrion expects supply volumes tied to large-scale tenders in major European countries to be reflected in the second half, along with increased year-end inventory demand from medical institutions.

The company said it plans to refine country-specific sales strategies based on regional seasonal demand and competitive conditions to extend its first-half growth into the second half.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.