To better showcase our efforts in bringing innovative entrepreneurs to market, we provide a summary of successes of the members of TRIANA LABS : AdLedge, Project B1, Secuderm and Peptinov.

Secuderm

THE COMPANY
Founded in 2006, Secuderm markets a patented waterproof dressing protection to the medical, industrial and sports communities. In addition to being used by the French navy’s medical corps, this innovative cover is distributed across more than 200 points of sale in France including pharmacies, hospitals, and sports stores.

BACKGROUND

Frustrated by having to protect a post-op scar with a plastic bag in order to shower, Secuderm founder Eric Gilli conceptualized and manufactured the first completely waterproof secondary dressing available on the market.
“Secuderm addresses and solves many of the problems encountered when protecting wounds, scars, or other sensitive areas -- the human body is not level and it is subject to friction and other stresses,” says Mr. Gilli. “Additionally, standard dressings can impede movement, and many wish to remain active and carry out daily activities such as bathing while protecting a specific bodily zone. Secuderm allows for that freedom without compromising safety or healing.”

CHALLENGE

With a successful product commercialization in France under its belt, the company is looking to broaden its reach and engage with the U.S. market without overburdening its current resources. Additionally, entering a new market requires knowledge of the business and regulatory environments, which can be difficult to appreciate from a distance.

WORKING WITH TRIANA

Secuderm met with Triana at the annual French-American Conference of Entrepreneurs and was impressed by its breadth of expertise and operational capabilities. “It’s not enough to find someone you can work with on a local level,” Mr. Gilli continues. “Trust in your collaborator’s know-how, judgment and expertise are critical when they’re helping to shape the direction of your company. Triana is a first-class partner that brings intelligence and efficiency to the process.”

SOLUTION

With Secuderm’s positioning well-established in France, Triana is developing an approach for the U.S. that will leverage this success and adapt it to a new environment. Through an in-depth examination of the market, Triana is helping Secuderm identify the most relevant segments, engage with them effectively, and develop an ongoing growth strategy.

A French digital media firm that has developed a specialized Ad Server that provides added transparency to advertisers and publishers. The range of advertising metrics that are considered industry standard today provide an abundance of data but leave out some valuable missing links that can make for valuable analysis of the viewer data.
The venture’s founders identified the gap through years of experience in the digital advertising field, and have validated their insights by signing on a contract with an advertising giant in France. Setting their sights on US became the next logical step given the volume of the market. What needed to be done then was to validate the need in the US and understand if the advertisers, ad agencies and publishers collaborated together in the same ways as they did in France and Europe. As with all technological innovations it is extremely important to not be “ahead of the curve”.
Triana Labs conducted a market study, and arranged for meeting with people in the industry through various connections from their network, to start the conversation regarding the value of the added transparency provided by the firm’s platform and where it fit in the value chain. As a result of some of these discussions some agencies and publishers professed willingness to test the platform.
The interest and enthusiasm for testing the tool indicates the need for the product and the potential for future marketing and growth opportunities. Going forward Triana Labs is going to work closely to facilitate the incorporation of the firm’s US arm.
"In March, Adledge decided to prospect the U.S. market for potential customers for its groundbreaking online advertising optimization range of products; in May, we signed a contract with Triana Labs with challenging short-term targets to meet; in June, Triana Labs reached the targets and delivered more than our most optimistic expectations. They organized introductory meetings that quickly developed into several concrete partnership proposals: for a pilot implementation with a leading advertising holding company, a request for development of a new application of Adledge product to meet a specific client's need, and a proposal from another leading online agency!
Thanks to a thorough preparation and careful preliminary selection, Triana was able to identify for us the relevant targets and set up a range of efficient prospective meetings that helped us immediately "go right to the point" with the relevant persons..." – Olivier de La Mesliere, CFO & VP Business Development, AdLedge

An entrepreneur with substantial expertise in the beauty industry wanted to independently introduce a brand of “cosmeceuticals” from a European laboratory into the US market. Cosmeceuticals, the segment of market that overlaps pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, is a high-growth sector and is still very nascent in the US.
With very little publicly information available, Triana Labs put together an in-depth market research and competitor study to project demand and create a positioning strategy for the line of products. It soon became evident that identifying the best distribution model was crucial to be able to capitalize on the market, as the brand could not be mass-market retail and did not want to be exclusive.
Triana Labs also provided services to conduct regulatory analyses to understand FDA and trademark requirements, which along with the business model identified formed the basis for time and budget estimates for the business plan. Interviews were conducted with a wide range of dermatologists and physicians, as part of the field study, to understand the current market landscape, target need and the behavior of the target consumer.
Going forward Triana looks forward to creating marketing and branding plans for the line of products and being a long term partner in the venture.
“Triana is the card you need when you want to successfully launch a European business in the United States. I have worked with Triana on a few different projects and find the team rich with great experience, open minds, boundless energy, great interpersonal skills, and that has a deep understanding and knowledge of the challenges of building new transatlantic ventures.
Earlier this year I needed support to conduct a feasibility study for the launch of a small pharmaceutical laboratory in the U.S. and Jabril Bensedrine responded right away. Through Triana’s amazing network, all the expertise I was looking for became available.
I was provided with access to a highly educated and out-performing project manager and all of Triana’s teammates offered me a unique combination of flexibility, nimbleness, determination, and focus. The team found me creative solutions to complex issues.
If you need to put a team together that has both a unique ability to pull excellent resources together and that has the expertise required to help new ventures succeed, do not look any further than utilizing Triana.” – Jerome A. Chevallier, PharmD, MBA

THE COMPANY

Paris-based Peptinov is an early-stage biotechnology startup that has recently obtained a patent for a new autoimmune disorder vaccination technology. The company has now entered the next stage of its development with the goal of successfully commercializing this vaccination technology for the millions affected by autoimmune diseases.

BACKGROUND

The highly dynamic U.S. market offers biotechnology companies a number of attractive features including flexible financing opportunities, a large potential customer base and a vibrant ecosystem. At the same time, bringing a new technology to market requires navigating a complex regulatory environment and overcoming numerous hurdles, both scientific and of a more general business nature, which can overwhelm the resources of a startup company.

CHALLENGE

Before gaining acceptance for medical usage, new products must undergo a lengthy process that includes clinical trials, engaging with regulatory authorities, managing the evolution of the product and targeted diseases, as well as the ongoing concerns of financing, talent, etc, that affect most small companies.
“A patent is just the first step,” says Jean-Francois Zagury, Founder of Peptinov. “We believe in this technology but knew that in order to move it forward we would be better off with a partner who could offer us the know-how, contacts and experience to facilitate this long-term process.”

WORKING WITH TRIANA

Triana’s interdisciplinary team helps support companies like Peptinov through the entire commercialization journey from research to pre-clinical, clinical trials, registration and pre-launch all the way to market availability. In addition to its ability to support companies through each step, Triana offers access to an extensive network of seasoned executives, and to turnkey services that allow entrepreneurs to focus on their offering and to benefit from synergies with other member companies.

SOLUTION

Within 3 months, the Triana team developed a comprehensive strategic plan that addresses Peptinov’s business imperatives, and helped the company secure early-stage funding. Additionally, Triana is currently building a plan for the next funding round.
“The Triana team is highly professional and competent, and collaborating with them has been extremely useful for us,” adds Dr. Zagury. “Additionally, they’ve introduced us to executives whose experiences correlate directly with our own and whose ideas and input have offered us tremendous insight. These are very much the kind of people you want to work with.”