In the very competitive energy-based aesthetic device market, Cynosure, Inc. (Westford, Mass.) stands out as one of the true innovators. Founded in 1991, Cynosure has undergone multiple reinventions — from its early days as a formative laser device developer, then transitioning to an industry-leading commercial manufacturer, to an acquisition by Hologic, Inc., in 2017. In late 2019, New York City-based private equity firm Clayton Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) acquired Cynosure from Hologic, breathing new life into the company.Cynosure is certainly regaining its position as a leader in the aesthetic space, according to James Boll, Vice President of R&D, who joined Cynosure in 1993. ”Cynosure has gone from being founded as a physicist run technocracy, exploded in growth to a sales-oriented company, and now this new chapter with CD&R is expanding our marketing and consumer connection to bring the Cynosure brand to a wider audience, not just in the United States, but globally. That’s the formula for breaking away and fostering a powerhouse company,” he said. The core principle on which Cynosure was founded and helped power the company to become a leader in the medical aesthetics industry, via technological prowess, is strategically embedded in the mission of the company today.”Cynosure’s DNA of technological innovation came from our founder, Dr. Horace Furumoto,” stated Mr. Boll. ”Early on, we were very research-oriented. When we developed a laser we worked very closely with the customer and responded to their immediate clinical needs, and that daily collaboration and constant contact led to very rapid product development, and that continues to be a core value and differentiator of ours. It was born from Dr. Furumoto’s need to be directly involved with problem solving, and his insistence that the R&D teams should be highly involved — that was a big part of his vision. The initial successes we had, such as dye lasers for vascular lesions and solid-state lasers for hair removal, were design philosophies from that era that persist today.”In the pioneering days of aesthetic laser technologies, it was essential to maintain a close collaborative relationship with key physicians and scientists, but eventually it became clear that it was time for Cynosure to evolve beyond its engineering roots. ”As a company, we were very technically focused,” recalled Mr. Boll. ”We were very rich in ideas but executing commercially was more of a struggle.”Dr. Furumoto retired in 2003 and Michael R. Davin joined Cynosure as Chairman and CEO. A year later, he became the Chairman of the company’s Board of Directors, and from 2003 to 2014 also served as President. A veteran of the light-based technology field, from 1998 to 2003 Mr. Davin served as co-founder and Vice-President of Worldwide Sales and Strategic Development at Cutera, Inc., and had previously spent 11 years at Coherent Medical, a seminal manufacturer of laser, optics and related equipment, in senior management positions across sales, marketing and clinical development.”Mr. Davin’s focus was primarily on the commercial side,” expressed Mr. Boll. ”He brought in a strong sales and marketing group, and a solid manufacturing system. From there, the volumes increased, the profits grew, and we expanded. Mr. Davin’s expertise contributed greatly to the commercial success of the technology that had been created largely by Dr. Furumoto.” Under his leadership, Mr. Davin drove Cynosure to become one of the largest medical aesthetic device companies in history in terms of revenue, market share and installed base and led the company to achieve compound annual revenue growth of over 20%. ”When I left Cutera people asked me, ‘Why are you going to Cynosure? It’s a no-name company?’ That really motivated me,” stated Mr. Davin. ”I knew that Cynosure had great technology but really didn’t have a true commercialization strategy. And despite it, we introduced Elite, a combination Alexandrite and YAG laser for hair removal that worked with all skin types. After that, we were off to the races and continued to introduce best-in-class technology backed by excellent clinical validation. Fortunately, I also had great relationships with key opinion leaders. The DNA of the company was still innovation first, but innovation surrounded by a body of clinical evidence, backed by strong commercialization and customer support.”While remaining focused on developing cutting-edge aesthetic devices, Mr. Davin also pursued a number of strategic acquisitions and licensed products for U.S. distribution from partners around the world, which effectively pushed Cynosure into the global aesthetic market for the first time. The most notable international partner was the Italian device manufacturer, El.En. ”It was a very natural relationship,” stated Mr. Boll. ”Mr. Davin was good at identifying acquisitions that were complementary. El.En., which had been a principal owner of Cynosure for a while, is technologically rich with high-quality products. There are many examples where we combined their technology with Cynosure’s internal engineering and created something remarkable.” ”In 2005, we made a commitment to our investors that we were going to launch at least one new product every year that would address high-value indications in global markets,” said Mr. Davin. ”Often times, we launched two. We spent more on R&D than anybody else, and we also looked at R&D differently than other manufacturers. Historically in our industry, innovation came first from the labs and the physicists, then it went straight to commercialization. Our approach was different. We went first to the doctors to hear from them directly what they wanted and needed, and where they felt light-based technology could play in treating indications in a very efficacious and safe way.”This groundbreaking approach led to the 2007 release of what many consider to be Cynosure’s breakthrough product, SmartLipo®, which brought laser technology to the body shaping market and was the result of a collaboration with El.En. Cynosure continued to acquire companies in order to add technologies to its product portfolio, such as the aesthetic laser business of HOYA ConBio and Palomar Medical (which developed Icon, a market-leading IPL-based device), and more recently Potenza™, an RF-based microneedling device that Cynosure licensed from Korea-based Jeisys Medical in early 2020. Other significant factors affecting Cynosure’s early growth included eagerly selling into non-core practitioner marketplaces, which began around 15 years ago and has since opened up the market for all of the energy-based device manufacturers, increasing success in the global market. Consistently, technology innovation has been the cornerstone of Cynosure’s success. As a global leader in the medical aesthetics space, Cynosure has been first-to-market in many key areas including PicoSure®, the world’s first picosecond laser; the Elite+™ Aesthetic Workstation, the world’s first Alexandrite-Nd:YAG System; and SculpSure®, the first FDA-cleared, non-invasive laser body contouring treatment. The company’s dedication to innovation is also evident in some of their newest devices, including Potenza, the world’s first FDA-cleared four-mode RF microneedling device and a new addition to the best-in-class TempSure™ platform featuring a unique, wrappable RF applicator.”We took the company from $23 million in 2003 to about $51 million in 2005,” said Mr. Davin. ”We became very profitable, had the most successful IPO in 2005 in our sector, and raised about $85 million in December 2005. The 2008 recession hit but the company came out of it strong and profitable. We acquired a number of companies and became the industry leader and far surpassed revenue expectations in our space.” By 2016 Cynosure reported $433.5 million in revenue, up more than 27% from 2015. This attracted the women’s health company Hologic, Inc., which purchased Cynosure in 2017. Following the acquisition, Mr. Davin took a year off to spend time with his family and also create a new advisory firm that mentors young executives. ”At the time, I was disconnected from the company and the industry, but in 2019, heard that Cynosure was being pursued,” he noted. ”Then I received a phone call and the new owners asked if I was interested in sitting on the Board under CD&R ownership and act as an advisor.”Cynosure remains an industry leader, added Mr. Davin. ”With the guidance of our new CEO, Todd Tillemans, the vision for the future is to be much more than a light-based technology company. It is to be a leader in the consumer aesthetics industry, and offer not only proven solutions that treat a wide variety of indications but also offer complementary solutions to light-based technology that perhaps works more effectively when paired with other techniques. The future is wide open — there aren’t any restrictions on where CD&R and Mr. Tillemans want to lead Cynosure long-term, and it is really refreshing to have the resources to be able to think that way. We’re going to continue to add new cargo to the ship in the form of a variety of solutions that I’m very excited about. Without a doubt, the focus will continue to be on best-in-class technology for treating patients in the most efficacious, safe way. So, hold onto your seats, it’s going to be a great ride.”This article was sponsored by Cynosure, LLC.Please feel free to contact us directly at: info@miinews.com© 2020 Medical Insight, Inc. |