Once again, the Health Lab by Burda was the industry get-together and catalyst for around 300 decision-makers this year who share the goal of shaping the future together. Last Thursday, representatives of the health industry met together at the invitation of BurdaVerlag and BCN in the Allianz Arena in Munich, Germany under the motto ‘Cha(ll)enge accepted’. The challenges of the health industry were the focal point of the talks given by multiple movers and shakers from the worlds of industry, agency and media.

The pandemic initiated an epochal shift that poses new challenges for the health industry. Many clients’ purchasing behaviour has changed profoundly and there has been a shift in the need for brand new categories of products and in distribution channels. Meanwhile, the demand is characterised by high volatility. As a result of these developments and against the backdrop of digitalisation, OTC companies must recreate themselves and meet new challenges with creative solutions. The transformation processes were highlighted in detail at this year’s Health Lab and discussed extensively in panels concerned with the topics of investment strategy, sustainability and sales channels. Zukunftspakt Apotheke (a country-wide coalition of pharmacies in Germany that provide digital services between doctors, pharmacies and healthcare providers) and KLAMBT Media Group were partners of the Health Lab by Burdathis year once again.

Among other things, more panels are occupying themselves with question of what still counts as a typical pharmacy in today’s context of increasingly blurred borders. Tobias Brodtkorb from Sempora Consulting shares his views on this topic. Under the title ‘New paths, new sales’, Helga Müller of Dr. Theiss Naturwaren (a healthcare and cosmetics product manufacturer in Homburg, Germany) introduced an example of best practice from the OTC industry. Additionally, Frank Staud of Stada went over the newest results from the 2021 Stada Health Reports, and Steffi Czerny of DLDMedia and author and journalist Nina Ruge discussed the scientific and practical possibilities for reversing the effects of old age.