A word from our founder,

Managing a company for over 40 years means that you experience many different aspects of business. Of course there are the different markets which we have developed over the years but there are also different cultures, habits, ways of doing the business and different circumstances.

As the years passed I have seen many changes as well. The general way of doing business has changed, people have changed and positions are changed but also the world economy, politics and the balance of power have changed. Everything changes whether we like it or not. It just happens and one day you suddenly notice it.

A good example is the communication technology. I went from using cable messages and the telex machine in the Tung Fang Hotel in Guangzhou during the trade fair to using fax machines. Then came email and now I use my mobile phone no matter where I am in the world.

Other examples of big change I find in the contacts and relationships we have with business partners. Due to privatisation, globalisation and opening markets we have to be more careful whom we are dealing with. Gentlemen agreements or take my word for it confirmations are a thing of the past.

The world is smaller now they say, but from the past I remember that everybody knew everybody in the pharmaceutical world. Now many people of that generation have either moved on or moved out. For me the time arrived in 2010 when I decided that it was time for the next generation to take over. Although I still enjoy the excitement and the thrills of doing the business I have stepped back and work in the background with my successors Perry, John and Alice.

John Tofield sr.