Business Deals from Iran
Han Hee-sang, CEO of H&Surgical, is one of 169 business delegates that accompanied President Park Geun-hye on her state visit to Iran in May. Han testifies that the recent business trip to Iran helped him to materialize his business agenda for the country. Despite the formidable challenges of the monopolistic market of surgical medical devices, Han said he saw great potential business opportunities.
Established in March 2010, H&Surgical specializes in surgical ligation clips and laparoscopic disposable trocars. H&Surgical has also successfully introduced self-developed non-absorbable polymer ligation clips. This is the first time for a Korean company and the third for a non-US company against the backdrop of 20 years of domination from that side of the world. Rather than simply copying existing products, H&Surgical succeeded in introducing surgical ligation clips with stronger binding power and more reliable cartridges and patenting them.
Asked about the experience of being part of a business delegation with President Park visiting Iran in May, Han said that the trip helped him substantiate the ongoing business talks which had started at international business exhibitions that he visited last year.
By participating in the delegation, he could seize on a chance to negotiate specific business models with his Iranian partner. In particular, the formal business meeting organized for medical equipment companies from Iran and Korea by the Minister of Health and Welfare, and the official act of signing an MOU, worked as an inducement for Iranian business partners to take concrete actions.
The respective contract, once completed -- which will happen within a couple of months -- is expected to generate US$2 million for the next three years. Under the contract, local partners will import either finished or semi-finished products or participate in production. These partners will also export localized H&Surgical products to nearby countries in the Middle East.