When Merck realized that demand in China is so large for its HPV vaccine Gardasil, the US company wanted to understand more about the market, but a coordinated pre-launch awareness campaign appears to have helped. 

In contrast to GSK’s online-to-offline approach to promote its HPV vaccine, Merck is going the conventional route and tapping into the Chinese market via a domestic partner for Gardasil and other vaccines. Its partner Zhifei Biological is accelerating an expansion of its direct sales team to extend its reach.

Meningococcal Groups A and C and Haemophilus B Conjugate vaccine production lines of Beijing Zhifei Lvzhu Biopharmaceutical Co. Ltd., which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chongqing Zhifei Biological Products Co. Ltd., will be inspected onsite for GMP certification.

China’s first World Health Organization prequalified vaccine marks a milestone in the country’s efforts to build on its massive internal demand. It also places the spotlight on other local vaccine producers that hope to repeat the success of the Chengdu Institute of Biological Products.