APEX PHARMACEUTICALS LAUNCHING APEX CLEAR OTC COUGH/COLD/ALLERGY LINE
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
APEX PHARMACEUTICALS LAUNCHING APEX CLEAR OTC COUGH/COLD/ALLERGY LINE, with shipping to retailers scheduled for the second quarter of 1994. Elkhart, Ind.-based Apex noted in a release that the five-product Apex Clear line contains "no alcohol, no sugar, no dye, and an outstanding cherry flavor." The liquid product line is being promoted to potential private-label customers. The product line includes Nighttime Allergy Relief Medicine (diphenhydrainine 50 mg) and Allergy Relief Medicine, which contains brompheniramine maleate 4 mg and phenylpropanolamine 25 mg and is similar to Robins' Dimetapp Elixir. Other Apex Clear products are a Cough Relief Medicine (guaifenesin 200 mg and dextromethorphan 20 mg), Nasal/Sinus Relief Medicine (pseudoephedrine 60 mg), and Cold & Cough Relief Medicine (chlorpheniramine maleate 4 mg, phenylpropanolamine 25 mg and dextromethorphan 20 mg), which provides "effective multi- symptom relief," Apex said in promotional materials. The five Apex Clear items join a growing market of alcohol- and sugar-free cough/cold products. Hi-Tech Pharmacal, for instance, launched its clear, alcohol- and sugar-free Diabetic Tussin item in the summer ("The Tan Sheet" Sept. 27, p. 21). Kramer Labs' recently introduced Safe Tussin 30, also a clear and sugar-free product. Another private-label manufacturer, Perrigo, will offer a clear cough item, Tussin DM Clear, by the end of February The Apex Clear line also capitalizes on the trend towards "clear" products, such as Bausch & Lomb's Clear Choice alcohol-free mouthwash and Gillette's Oral-B clear oral care products. In addition to the Apex Clear line, Apex markets a line of liquid private-label cough and cold remedies and children's pain relievers that are copied from such brand-name products as P&G's NyQuil; Vicks Formula 44 and 44D; Robins' Robitussin and Dimetapp; Sandoz' Triaminic; and Warner-Lambert's Benadryl. Headed by Chairman, CEO and President Edward Hou, Apex operates out of a 435,000-square-foot facility in Elkhart, Ind. that was bought from American Home Products in 1991; the company moved into the facility in October 1992. Apart from manufacturing private-label OTCS, Apex, which was formed in 1988, also contract manufactures and packages various drug products, sources bulk raw materials and provides contract product development and laboratory expertise. Over the long-term, Apex said it hopes to enter the generic prescription drug business.