Aix-Marseille-Provence is attracting top international biotech companies

A look back at the healthcare-sector prospecting campaign carried out during the BioFIT trade show in Marseille

Close to one thousand life sciences and biotechnology specialists from around the world attended the BioFIT innovation and tech transfer trade show in Marseille on December 12 and 13. This innovation and technology transfer event was an opportunity for Provence Promotion to welcome four international biotech companies to the territory. These companies, which are based in London, Tbilisi, Montreal, and Raleigh, are considering setting up in the Aix-Marseille-Provence metro area because of the dynamic and diverse healthcare ecosystem, particularly in the field of immunotherapy.

In the run-up to the BioFit trade show, which is a major international event for academics, tech transfer centers, pharmaceutical labs, and biotech companies, Provence Promotion welcomed four international medical technology companies that are exploring the possibility of setting up in Europe or France. This was a superb occasion to present the territory’s advantages and opportunities in the healthcare sector.

The delegation included Neobe Therapeutics, a UK company that combats the resistance of cancer cells by activating the immune system; Dzala, a Georgian company developing an innovative treatment to destroy airborne bacteria; Galenova, a Canadian leader in pharmaceutical preparations; and PhosphoGam, an American biotech from the “Research Triangle” in North Carolina that is at the forefront of immunotherapy and capable of treating different types of cancer using specific cells harvested from healthy donors.

Biotech companies are actively exploring the possibility of locating to Aix-Marseille

Having conquered the Canadian market from its base in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, Galenova is now looking to repeat its success in the American and European markets.

Since its creation in 1994, the company has developed more than 15 000 products and produces 2000 compounding formulas. “We plan to start operations in France in 2024, and are looking for land in Marseille to build a 2000-meter-square production facility and warehouse to manufacture some of our compounded preparations. Our project fits perfectly with the France 2030 investment plan, which supports the establishment of companies and promotes the country’s manufacturing sovereignty in the field of pharmaceuticals. Provence Promotion, together with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Aix-Marseille-Provence and the Pays d’Aix Développement agency, are playing a key role in putting us in touch with local stakeholders and government funding specialists. Over the next five years, our facility is expected to create around 30 new jobs,” said Jean-Philippe and Hélène Gentès, who are the President and Vice-President of International Development of Galenova. The husband-and-wife team of pharmacists also emphasized the importance of the direct flights between Marseille-Provence and Canada in their choice of locations.

Meanwhile, the North Carolina-based physicist Richard Lopez already has an established link to Provence: he founded his company PhosphoGam in 2018 based on the purchase of a license from Innate Pharma, which has its headquarters in Marseille. “We develop human lymphocytes for clinical use, and now I want to bring this technology back to France. From my perspective, the immuno-oncology ecosystem is absolutely perfect as it has Innate Pharma, the presence of other biotech talent, and, of course, the Institut Paoli-Calmettes cancer center. I want to develop a production facility in Marseille and combine it with an R&D operation. Provence Promotion has provided us with a detailed analysis of the working environment,” said Richard Lopez, who added it would be a dream to settle in Marseille as he loves the bustling port city.

The delegation of companies particularly appreciated the discussions Provence Promotion organized with lawyers, financing experts, technology transfer specialists, and experts in European regulations. The tour also included a visit to Luminy in the south end of Marseille, where there is an ecosystem of successful start-ups and an established biomedical science park that was set up in partnership with Eurobiomed, the competitiveness cluster dedicated to health tech in the south of France.

Marseille’s expanding healthcare infrastructure in the south of the city provides an ideal location for biotech companies

The international healthcare leaders were also impressed by Aix-Marseille’s research hospital and university infrastructure as well as the testimonials given by medtech entrepreneurs that were already established in Provence. The delegation visited the DocCity LifeSciences site in Sainte-Marguerite, which is located in the quadrilateral of healthcare expertise formed by the Hôpital Sud, Institut Paoli-Calmettes, the CNRS national center for scientific research, and the INSERM national institute of health and medical research. DocCity will be an 8000-square-meter laboratory and office development that will be completed within 12 months. As it is still in the construction phase, it has the advantage of being able to be custom-built and adapted to the future needs of the investors.

While the Aix-Marseille territory already enjoys the reputation of being a biotech hotspot, especially since the Marseille Immunology Biocluster was named part of the official national biocluster program, the BioFIT trade show and the tour of delegates marked the start of a new phase in Provence Promotion’s prospecting campaign to attract medical companies that will run from 2024 to 2026.