Douglas Pharmaceuticals
Douglas Pharmaceuticals Ltd is a New Zealand-based manufacturer of pharmaceutical products. Founded in 1967 by West Auckland chemist Graeme Douglas, the company started out distributing prescription medicines, before manufacturing and later successfully researching and developing its own products for export.
History
1967 - 1990Douglas Pharmaceuticals began when founder, Graeme Douglas, created a cough syrup called Kofsin, while working as a chemist in Te Atatū, West Auckland. As demand for the cough syrup grew, the company contracted manufacturing chemists to maintain enough supply. Afterwards, the company began importing niche pharmaceuticals and packaging them at Douglas's chemist shop before distributing them to other pharmacists. In the early 1970s, Douglas's chemist shop had over $2 million in revenue when he sold it to focus on the pharmaceutical business.
By the late 1980s, Douglas Pharmaceuticals was selling over 40 products and had a revenue of $25 million, which increased in ten years to more than $70 million.
1990 - 2014
In 2012, Sir Graeme's eldest son Jeff began handling much of the day-to-day running of the company.
Shortly afterwards, Douglas Pharmaceuticals expanded to manufacture consumer products, including the Clinicians nutraceuticals range and Phloe for bowel health, and by 2016 employed more than 450 people.
In 2005, the company opened a manufacturing facility in Nadi, Fiji, producing quality tablets and capsules, and powder products for international export markets.
2014 - present
In 2014, Graeme Douglas stepped down from the company's day-to-day business, and his son Jeff Douglas became managing director of the company.
In June 2015, the company announced the opening of a new warehouse in Fiji and stated its intention to expand manufacturing at the site, which started in 2017.
By 2016, the company had grown to employ more than 450 people over the two sites and manufactured products sold in 55 countries, with its largest international success in prescription softgels for acne.
Founder Sir Graeme Douglas died on 1 September 2016. The Sir Graeme Douglas Memorial Garden opened in July 2022 in his honour. These gardens and many of the gardens across the road at the head office feature a beautiful pink rose developed at Graeme Douglas’ request by celebrated rose breeder Sam McGredy.
Douglas Pharmaceuticals announced the development of a $50 million research and development centre with state-of-the-art facilities that include pilot scale product development suites and commercial manufacturing rooms, and it has a separate waste system to capture cytotoxic waste. The 4500-sqm Douglas Innovation building opened in September 2022.
By 2024, the company employed over 650 people and manufactured 40 products sold in over 50 countries. Its key speciality areas included oncology, dermatology, the central nervous system, immunity and immuno-suppression.
Based on this experience, Douglas launched a contract development and manufacturing organisation, , in early 2024. Douglas CDMO focuses on the development and registration of specialty generic medicines destined for international markets, including the United States and the European Union.
In late 2025, the company realigned the legal structure of the organisation to separate the pharmaceuticals and novel drug development side of the business from the consumer and nutraceuticals side, creating a new company, , for the latter.
This legal division brought the number of employees directly employed by Douglas Pharmaceuticals to just under 500, although both companies remain owned by the Douglas family, and remain located together in Henderson, Auckland.
Douglas Pharmaceuticals won the inaugural New Zealand Manufacturer on the Year Award for 2025, presented by Catherine Lye, CEO of Advancing Manufacturing Aotearoa, and Minister for Manufacturing, Chris Penk.