The Alcon Story  | ||||
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The Alcon story is one of almost unparalleled success and growth.
The story began in 1945, when two pharmacists combined their resources to open a small pharmacy in Fort Worth, Texas. They called their pharmacy Alcon, from the first syllable of each of their last names: Robert D. Alexander and William C. Connor. This small shop ultimately grew into the $4 billion international pharmaceutical corporation which exists today. Rather than waiting for business to come to them, the partners encouraged doctors to recommend their pharmacy to patients. Shortly, they began selling the injectable vitamins they had developed. Connor and Alexander also asked the doctors questions in order to uncover other business opportunities. Through these conversations, the men discovered there were no pharmaceutical companies marketing eye care products. Instead, doctors sent their patients to many different local pharmacists who - with varying degrees of skill - would prepare their prescriptions using distilled water and drugs the doctors recommended. Because this water was often not sterile, infections resulted. As recently as the 1950s, people were going blind from these infections. Connor and Alexander decided they must make sterile products of a consistent quality to treat eye conditions. They began developing products specifically formulated for eye care. In fact, the plastic dropper bottle - now universally used for ocular preparations - is an Alcon invention. In 1947, the partners incorporated their business and through the next few decades, the Alcon company experienced slow, but steady, growth. By 1970, sales had reached $25 million. | ||||
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Alcon leadership in the eye care market was well established when Nestlé became interested in the corporation in 1977. Nestlé - an international company headquartered in Switzerland - was studying the long-term growth projections for numerous industries in the United States. Nestlé decided that the health care field was an ideal candidate for diversification. The features Nestlé sought in a health care company match Alcon exactly: a corporation with a skilled management team, clearly-defined research and marketing goals, and the capability to convert increased investments in technology into new products. From Nestlé, Alcon gained the resources to expand its involvement in the ophthalmic surgical marketplace. By the time Alcon had its 50th anniversary in 1997, the company had earned the position of global leader in the ophthalmic marketplace. Alcon already had an extensive research program which became far more comprehensive than one would expect from a company of its size. Alcon continued to grow and built and expanded plants in the United States, Belgium, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, and France. For more than a half-century, the protection and restoration of sight has been our sole purpose. This vision has made us leaders of the eye care industry, throughout the world. With the vision of our founders intact and the strength of Nestlé behind us, we are uniquely placed to continue our aggressive course of developing, manufacturing and marketing the most advanced eye care products and instrumentation. | ||||
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