Specialty pharmaceutical firm Alliance Pharma has strengthened its board with the appointment of two experienced non-executive directors.
The Chippenham-headquartered firm said Jo Le Couilliard and Richard Jones, who took up their roles this week, brought international business experience and capital markets expertise to the board with both having “substantial pharmaceutical and healthcare experience gained at listed companies”. 
Jo Le Couilliard served a total of almost 20 years as an executive at global drugs giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), leaving last June to focus on non-executive roles.
Her recent positions at GSK included senior vice president and area head, Asia Pacific, a role in which she was responsible for sales and marketing in Australia, New Zealand, Korea, Taiwan and South East Asia.
Jo, who qualified as an accountant at PwC, is currently a non-executive director of UK-listed healthcare companies Cello Health and Circassia Pharmaceuticals.
Alliance Pharma described Richard Jones as having “extensive capital markets, growth company and board experience”.
He is currently the chief financial officer of Mereo BioPharma Group, a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on rare diseases which, like Alliance Pharma, is listed on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM market.
Prior to this he was chief financial officer of another AIM-listed firm, Shield Therapeutics. He also qualified as an accountant at PwC and worked in investment banking for a total of 12 years focusing predominantly on the healthcare sector.
Alliance Pharma chairman David Cook said: “Jo and Richard bring a huge breadth of relevant and varied experience to Alliance. Jo’s extensive experience at GSK included a senior sales and marketing position in Asia Pacific, which represents Alliance’s fastest-growing region.
“Richard, from his work as an investment banker and as a financial executive, brings a depth of relevant capital markets experience. I look forward to their contribution to the company’s ongoing development into a leading international healthcare business.”
Alliance buys underperforming drugs brands and realises their potential through investment. It now has sales in more than 100 countries worldwide via direct sales, joint ventures and a wide network of distributors.
It has a strong track record of acquiring the rights to established niche products and currently owns or licenses the rights to around 90 pharmaceutical and consumer healthcare products.
