Cindy Eckert

Cindy Eckert is an American entrepreneur known for founding Sprout Pharmaceuticals. She subsequently founded The Pink Ceiling which invests in companies founded by, or delivering products for, women.[1] In November 2017, Eckert re-acquired Sprout Pharmaceuticals as part of a lawsuit settlement, and the rights to its drug Addyi, from Valeant after Valeant's stock collapsed due to insider trading and price jacking allegations.[2][3][4][5][6]

Not to be confused with Cynthia Eckert or Cindy Whitehead.
Cindy Eckert
Born
New York, U.S.
Other namesCindy Whitehead
EducationMarymount University (BBA)
Parent

Early life and education

Cindy Eckert was born in Western New York. According to a New York Times profile piece, she attended a different school each year from the fourth grade through the twelfth. During those years she lived overseas where her father, Fred J. Eckert, served as a U.S. Ambassador to Fiji.[7] She earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from Marymount University.[8][9]

Career

Eckert began her career with Merck, before moving on to work with smaller, specialty pharmaceutical companies Dura and Elan.[8] After a stint with QVC, Eckert found Slate Pharmaceuticals and Sprout Pharmaceuticals.[1]

She sold Sprout to Valeant in 2015 after the company won FDA approval for the drug Addyi, the first drug designed to enhance female libido.[10] Prior to founding Sprout, Eckert co-founded Slate Pharmaceuticals in 2007. Slate was focused on men's sexual health with an FDA approved long acting testosterone product, Testopel. Slate sold in 2011 to Actient Pharmaceuticals.[11]

Eckert established an investment firm called The Pink Ceiling in 2016 after the most recent exit, when she sold Sprout Pharmaceuticals to Valeant Pharmaceuticals for $1 billion.[12] In November 2017, Eckert re-acquired Sprout Pharmaceuticals from Valeant for "almost nothing" as part of a settlement of a lawsuit, according to Bloomberg News.[2] Valeant's stock had collapsed nearly 80% from the acquisition price due to a large financial engineering and price jacking scandal.[6]

In 2018, Eckert formally changed her name from Cindy Whitehead.[13]

The Pink Ceiling

Eckert launched the Pink Ceiling in order to improve access to capital for female-led start-ups.[1] “The injustice I’m fighting with the Pink Ceiling is not only women’s limited access to capital, but also their limited access to mentors,” she told Entrepreneur Magazine.[1] Eckert works with a team of women to determine which female-led companies will be the recipients of venture capital funding.[14][15]

To date, The Pink Ceiling has invested in eleven start-ups, with public announcements on their involvement with Undercover Colors (a company that is developing wearable nail tech to detect the presence of a date rape drug in drinks),[12] Lia Diagnostics (which produces a flushable pregnancy test),[16] Intuitap (which has a medical device aimed to streamline the spinal tap procedure),[1] and Pursuit (which is developing a patented technology to improve four different aspects of sleep)[17]

The Pink Ceiling's affiliated incubator, called the “Pinkubator” because of its female focus, is located in Raleigh, North Carolina. The “Pinkubator” was established to provide female-focused entrepreneurs with direct access to mentors, investment opportunities, and business development guidance.[8]

Controversy

Eckert's drug Addyi has faced rampant criticism from scientists and physicians due to lack of efficacy and a PR campaign waged by her company Sprout Pharmaceuticals against the FDA.[18][19][20][21] Critics have said that it shows the FDA caving to social pressure over the actual benefits of the drug.[22][23] As of 2018 only about 600 prescriptions are filled every month according to Bloomberg.[24] In 2020 the FDA sent Sprout a warning letter regarding their marketing of the drug demanding the Sprout create "comprehensive plan for truthful, non-misleading, and complete corrective messages".[25][26]

References
  1. "This Entrepreneur Who Sold Her Company for $1 Billion Wants You to Throw Out the Unwritten Rules That Hold You Back". Entrepreneur.com. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
  2. "Valeant Gives $1 Billion Female Libido Pill Back to Old Owners". Bloomberg. 6 November 2017. Retrieved 2018-01-23.
  3. "Arrogance and Greed: Ackman, Valeant Pay $290M to End Allergan Insider Trading Lawsuit". BioSpace. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  4. "Ackman's Pershing Square, Valeant to appear in court to discuss an insider trading lawsuit settlement". CNBC. 2018-01-03. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  5. "Anger Behind the Scenes When Valeant Jacked Up Price by 2,700% for Lead Poisoning Drug". BioSpace. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  6. Morgenson, Gretchen (2016-07-29). "How Valeant Cashed In Twice on Higher Drug Prices". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  7. Bryant, Adam (30 September 2016). "Cindy Whitehead: No Nickname? Just Leave That to Me". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
  8. "Woman behind female libido drug launches 'Pinkubator' for women-focused businesses". NewsObserver.com. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
  9. "How Did Cindy Eckert And Her Empire Win Prejudice And Skeptical Investors?". 13 October 2020. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  10. "CEO of company behind Addyi says female sexuality is about biology, not just psychology". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
  11. "Company Overview of Slate Pharmaceuticals, Inc". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
  12. "The woman behind 'female Viagra' sold her company for $1 billion — that's when everything fell apart". BusinessInsider.com. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
  13. "'Female Viagra' Founder Is Back as CEO After Valeant Gave the Billion-Dollar Drug Back for Free". Fortune.com. Retrieved 2018-06-13.
  14. "How I Get It Done: Cindy Whitehead, the Creator of 'Female Viagra'". NYMag.com. Retrieved 2017-08-11.
  15. "Exclusive: The Woman Behind the 'Female Viagra' Has a New Venture". Fortune.com. Retrieved 2017-08-11.
  16. "Philly startup creates new pregnancy test". Philly.com. Retrieved 2017-08-11.
  17. "Unapologetically Pink". FacesOfFounders.com. Retrieved 2017-08-11.
  18. Baid, Rashmi; Agarwal, Rakesh (2018). "Flibanserin: A controversial drug for female hypoactive sexual desire disorder". Industrial Psychiatry Journal. 27 (1): 154–157. doi:10.4103/ipj.ipj_20_16. ISSN 0972-6748. PMC 6198608. PMID 30416308.
  19. says, Mark Thorson (2019-04-11). "FDA chastises Addyi maker over trying to remove alcohol safety warning". STAT. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  20. Schulte, Brigid; Dennis, Brady (2015-08-18). "FDA approves controversial drug for women with low sex drives". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  21. Woloshin, Steven; Schwartz, Lisa M. (2016-04-01). "US Food and Drug Administration Approval of Flibanserin: Even the Score Does Not Add Up". JAMA Internal Medicine. 176 (4): 439–442. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2016.0073. ISSN 2168-6106. PMID 26926770.
  22. Nagoski, Emily (2015-02-27). "Opinion | Nothing Is Wrong With Your Sex Drive". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  23. "Debate Over Addyi Flares Anew". www.medpagetoday.com. 2016-03-01. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  24. Koons, Cynthia (June 13, 2018). "The Women's Libido Pill Is Back, and So Is the Controversy". Bloomberg News.
  25. "FDA warns Sprout for misleading Addyi come-on". www.raps.org. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
  26. Commissioner, Office of the (2020-03-24). "FDA orders important safety labeling changes for Addyi". FDA. Retrieved 2021-06-03.
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