Honorary Chairman Eo Jun-sun, who has led Anguk Pharm for 53 years as the first-generation manager of the domestic pharmaceutical industry, passed away on the 4th. He died at the age of 85.
Born in Boeun, North Chungcheong Province in 1937, the deceased graduated from Daejeon High School and Chung-Ang University with a degree in economics. He entered the pharmaceutical industry by acquiring Anguk Pharmaceuticals in 1969 while he was working as a managing director of drug dispatch in Seoul.
The first product that the deceased launched by Ahn-Guk Pharm is the cough medicine ‘Tusu Cochin’. In 1981, he introduced ‘Toby Comb’, an amelioration agent for blindness, and developed it into his representative brand. In order to develop a new drug in Korea, the deceased spent 10-20% more money than other pharmaceutical companies with similar sales, and launched Prospan, Anifen, Revotension, Sinetura, Levosartan, and Retopra. In the 2010s, the Biopharmaceutical Headquarters was established to expand the bio business. In 2020, it declared ‘Ahn-Gook Pharm 2030 New Vision’ to become a total healthcare company.
The deceased always emphasized to the executives and employees ‘the strength of the kettle’ He is also well known as a manager who communicated directly with the sales department executives and employees.
He also contributed greatly to the development of the pharmaceutical industry. In 1979, while serving as the chairman of the Korea Pharmaceutical Industry Cooperative, he established the Hyangnam Pharmaceutical Industrial Complex to solve the problem of shortage of production plants by small and medium-sized pharmaceutical companies. He served as president and chairman of the Pharmaceutical Association. The deceased, who served as the 15th member of the National Assembly for four years from 1996, proposed an amendment to the ‘Asset Revaluation Act’ to prevent domestic companies from being sold at low prices abroad during the financial crisis. He was awarded the Order of Order of the Republic of Korea Peony in 2001.
Survivors include his wife Lim Young-gyun, son Eojin, vice president of Anguk Pharm, Anguk Health CEO Eo Kwang, daughters Eo Yeon-jin and Eo Myeong-jin, and Eo Ye-jin, director of Haedam Economic Research Institute. The funeral will be held at Samsung Seoul Hospital, and the funeral will be held at 6 am on the 6th.
Reporter Lee Ji-hyun bluesky@hankyung.com
