Case study · Medical device · endovascular software

Six years running the China business of a French SME

A market that was not ready, a partnership with a stentgraft manufacturer, and a distribution network we have managed on the client’s behalf since.

ClientTherenva
DirectionEurope → China

What they asked

Therenva wanted its Endosize endovascular planning software in China without diverting its own small team to do it. The difficulty was that the market for surgical planning software barely existed yet.

What we did

  • Market maturity survey for endovascular surgery planning
  • Partnership with a major Chinese stentgraft manufacturer
  • KOL network construction among endovascular surgeons
  • Distribution network created and managed for more than six years

How it ran

  1. Establish that the market was immature — and say so

    Our survey found surgical planning was not yet standard practice. The honest reading was that the constraint was education, not distribution, and that a conventional launch would have failed.

  2. Attach to a product surgeons already buy

    We built a strategic partnership with a major Chinese stentgraft manufacturer, allowing collaborative development and product integration, so the software travelled with hardware that had an existing route into the operating theatre.

  3. Make surgeons the advocates

    We assembled a KOL network to promote Endosize among peers and give the brand visibility where adoption decisions are actually made.

  4. Run it, not just design it

    We created the distribution network and have managed it on Therenva’s behalf for more than six years, with the education programme running alongside.

Outcome

  • A solid position for Endosize among Chinese endovascular surgeons.
  • An integration partnership with a major domestic stentgraft manufacturer.
  • A distribution network in continuous operation for over six years.
  • A China business run without the client building a Chinese team.

What it taught us

When a market is not ready for a category, the entry strategy is an education strategy — and someone has to stay to run it after the report is delivered.