BOULDER, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Brickell Biotech, Inc. (“Brickell”), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the development of innovative and differentiated therapeutics for the treatment of skin diseases, today announced the appointment of Robert Brown as Chief Executive Officer and Director, effective January 1, 2019. Mr. Brown assumes the role from Reginald Hardy, Brickell’s current CEO and co-founder, who initiated the leadership succession plan to best position Brickell and its lead product candidate, sofpironium bromide, as it progresses to Phase 3 in the first half of 2019. Mr. Hardy will remain on Brickell’s Board of Directors and will serve as special advisor to the CEO.
“Rob is the ideal candidate to assume the CEO role at this moment of Brickell’s growth. I’m certain that his comprehensive pharmaceutical industry experience will guide us confidently into the marketplace,” said Mr. Hardy. “As sofpironium bromide moves into Phase 3 trials early next year, it was the right time to strengthen our commercial capabilities and to grow our sales and marketing infrastructure. I’m excited for our next steps as a company and look forward to contributing to our success as a member of the Board of Directors.”
Mr. Brown brings to Brickell more than 30 years of experience at pharmaceutical industry giant Lilly where he currently serves as the Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President. During his years at Lilly, Mr. Brown has helped bring many blockbuster products to market, including Taltz®, Cialis® and Cymbalta®, as well as overseeing the launch of seven new chemical entities (NCEs) across a wide range of therapeutic categories, including dermatology. In addition to his product commercialization expertise, Mr. Brown has significant leadership experience. Among many positions, he served as President and General Manager of Lilly’s China affiliate, Lilly Suzhou JV, growing the affiliate from 45 employees to over 500, and in just three years catapulting the company up 46 places in industry sales rankings.
“We are incredibly excited to have Rob join Brickell and are confident that he will prove to be an invaluable asset to the company,” said Brickell’s Board Chairman, Charlie Stiefel. “Rob has commercialized numerous products – several of which achieved blockbuster status in the marketplace, even as the second or third product coming to market within its respective category. This is especially relevant experience as we look to enter the hyperhidrosis market, an area of vast unmet medical need that, until recently, had not seen any therapeutic advances for years but is now becoming a better understood market opportunity.”
Mr. Brown received his Bachelor’s degree in Economics from DePauw University and his Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Indiana University. While at Lilly, Brown served as a Board Member of Lilly ICOS LLC, and he currently serves as a Board Member at Franklin College.
“I was very attracted by the opportunity to join such a promising and well-positioned pre-commercial, late-stage company like Brickell, where my pharmaceutical industry experience could have a real impact,” said Mr. Brown. “This company has tremendous momentum and a pipeline of exciting NCEs that are on track to progress rapidly. I’m particularly excited about sofpironium bromide, which has the potential to be a best-in-class product and to provide clinically meaningful therapeutic relief to millions of Americans living with hyperhidrosis.”
Brickell is currently on track to initiate two Phase 3 pivotal trials for sofpironium bromide in the first half of 2019, and by the second half of 2020 the company intends to have completed all necessary activities required to file a New Drug Application (NDA) with the FDA. In addition, the company’s current pipeline consists of four new molecular entities targeting the treatment of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, psoriasis, androgenic alopecia and allergic contact dermatitis, which are in earlier stages of development.
About Sofpironium Bromide
Sofpironium bromide, a new chemical entity and “soft” drug, belongs to a class of medications called anticholinergics. Anticholinergics block the action of acetylcholine, a chemical that transmits signals within the nervous system that are responsible for a range of bodily functions, including the activation of sweat glands. Soft drugs, such as sofpironium bromide, exert their action topically and are rapidly metabolized once absorbed into the blood. This mechanism of action allows for effective doses to be used while reducing the limiting systemic side effects associated with other drugs in this class.
About Brickell Biotech
Brickell Biotech, Inc. is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on the development of innovative and differentiated therapeutics for the treatment of skin diseases. Its pipeline consists of potential novel therapeutics for hyperhidrosis, cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, psoriasis, androgenic alopecia and allergic contact dermatitis. Brickell’s management team and board of directors have extensive experience in product development, having served in leadership roles at several pharmaceutical and successful start-up companies. Its strategy is to leverage this experience to in-license, acquire, develop and commercialize products that Brickell believes can be successful in the dermatology marketplace. For more information, visit www.brickellbio.com.
