Medicis Aesthetics SWOT analysis and competitive product positioning

Medicis Aesthetics

SWOT Analysis and Product/Price Comparison of Medicis Aesthetics

Strengths

One of the primary strengths possessed by Medicis Aesthetics is their position as a subsidiary of Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation. This provides Medicis Aesthetics with a fair amount of security and capital backing when compared to their competitors, which in turn translates to better growth potential through research and development as well as through better enabling the firm to weather financial hardships due to internal or external causes. The product class specialization of the company, which focuses on dermatological and aesthetic pharmaceuticals development and distribution, is also a great strength for Medicis Aestehtics, as it allows the company to fully explore and rapidly innovate when compared to most of its direct competitors -- often single departments within larger companies whose projects likely entail oversight by many different individuals with different positions and different stakes in the company, splitting focus for these competitors.

Weaknesses

Unfortunately, the product specialization that Medicis Aesthetics engages in, while allowing them to efficiently innovate and progress, also leaves them more susceptible to market- and industry-specific issues. This is the company's primary weakness when compared to its competitors; all of these companies have the same internal weaknesses comprised of the cost of new pharmaceutical development, testing, and approval before a profit can be turned. As its specialization is the company's primary point of difference with its competitors, it is both an asset and a liability even when properly managed.

Threats

Luckily, Medicis Aesthetics' capital position as a subsidiary of Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation also enables it to better weather external threats to the company, which certainly exists for the industry as a whole. Threats of litigation are a very real factor of how this industry does business, especially with certain product lines. In addition, the industry is now facing the threat of a prolonged recession, which many analysts claim we are only in the beginnings of. If this proves to be the case, Medicis Aesthetics and its competitors will be faced with an ever-shrinking consumer pool. This will make competition fiercer and make profitability highly dependent on materials and labor costs.

Product Comparison

Two of Medici Aesthetics' most popular and currently profitable products are Restylane and Perlane, both of which are dermal fillers (non-surgical wrinkle removers) composed of hyaluronic acid. Though patented and using a relatively unique mechanism to achieve its results, these two related products are far from the only dermal fillers or medical wrinkle removal products/systems/procedures on the market, making competition quite fierce in this arena. The same is true of its Triaz anti-acne medicated foaming wipes, though the company's Solodyn, an oral antibiotic for the treatment of acne and acne infections in adolescents and adults, is more unique and faces less competition from similar products in the industry manufactured by competing organizations.

Price Comparison

These patents do not come cheaply, whether or not there are similar products in existence as well, but all of the companies in this industry face the same prohibitive costs and limitations in customer potential. These forces are likely largely responsible for the generally equitable prices found between Medicis Aesthetics pharmaceuticals and other available products and treatments for the same conditions. The market forces are very much in effect in this industry, where all spending is ultimately discretionary, and no company can afford to be out priced by another. Specific precuts, however, notably the two dermal fillers mentioned above, have retained a market niche and built brand loyalty, allowing for premiums to be charged for the product.