Toulouse, January 3, 2012 – Vexim, a medtech company specializing in the minimally invasive, anatomical treatment of vertebral compression fractures, has announced the appointment of Vincent Gardès as Chief Executive Officer. Vincent Gardès has over 15 years of international experience in marketing, sales and general management in the medtech industry. His appointment comes at a time when Vexim is accelerating the international deployment of the Spinejack®.
“I am very pleased to welcome Vincent to Vexim and I’m sure that he will help expand the company’s business”, commented Bruce de la Grange, Chairman of the Board of Directors. He added that “Vincent has all the qualities needed to lead the commercial deployment phase that we have initiated. His 15 years of experience in management positions at Stryker (one of the leaders in the orthopedics market) and Medtronic (a major player in medtech) constitute a valuable asset”.
“I am delighted to be joining Vexim; the company has a unique, minimally invasive approach to treating vertebral fractures with the SpineJack®. We are going to do everything we can to accelerate the product’s commercial deployment and deliver benefits to as many patients and physicians as possible” stated Vincent Gardès.
In 1995, Vincent Gardès started his career with Stryker Spine as Product Manager, Europe. In 1996, he was promoted to the position of Sales & Marketing Manager, Knees & Spine, at Stryker Spain. After returning to France in 1999, he served as Team Leader Hips, Europe, and then Group Product Manager Spine, Global, for Stryker Orthopaedics until 2002. At the end of that year, Vincent Gardès joined the Medtronic group as Division Manager Europe, Spine. In 2004, he was promoted to the position of Business Unit Manager, Spine & Biologics, France, and then became Regional Business Director, France & Iberia, in 2007. In September 2008, Vincent Gardès was appointed as General Manager, Iberia, at CR Bard (based in Barcelona).
Vincent Gardès graduated in Business Administration from INSEEC Business School and also earned a Postgraduate Certificate in Leadership Capability from Glasgow Caledonian University. He speaks French, English and Spanish fluently. 2
About the SpineJack® range of implants
The SpineJack® is a titanium implant (5 mm in diameter and 25 mm long) that covers 80% of spinal column fractures (vertebrae TH10 to L5). In June 2011, the introduction of two new sizes (6.5 mm long and 4.2 mm in diameter, respectively) enabled the SpineJack® product range to address all types of vertebral fractures. The implant is inserted into a patient’s vertebra via a transpedicular, minimally invasive approach (just one or two 5 mm skin incisions). A simple but specialized set of instruments is used to prepare the vertebra for the X-ray- guided insertion of one or two implants, depending on the anatomical configuration of the fracture and the degree of reconstruction required. Once this step has been completed, bone cement is injected into the restored vertebra in order to secure the vertebral structure and relieve the patient’s pain. A trained surgeon takes only 25 to 35 minutes to complete the whole procedure. The patient can expect a very significant reduction in pain immediately after the operation and will generally be discharged from hospital 24 hours later.
About Vexim
Toulouse-based Vexim was founded in February 2006 as a Teknimed spin-off by the well-known entrepreneur Jacques Essinger and the leading European private equity firm Truffle Capital. Vexim is a Med-Tech company that specializes in minimally invasive solutions for the treatment of vertebral fractures. The company was also subsequently financed by Banexi Ventures in September 2006 and received financial support from Oséo (the French state innovation agency) in 2009. Vexim is developing the SpineJack® system for anatomically optimal restorative surgery of vertebral fractures. In July 2009, the company signed an exclusive agreement with Stryker EMEA for distribution of the SpineJack® in Germany, the UK, Austria and Ireland. SpineJack® is CE marked and was first commercialized in mid-2010. The company currently has 23 employees. For more information, visit the company website at www.vexim.fr.
CONTACTS
Vexim
Vincent Gardès, CEO
Tel.: +33 (0) 5.61.48.48.38
v.gardes@vexim.fr
Alizé RP
Caroline Carmagnol
caroline@alizerp.com +33 (0)6 64 18 99 59
Anne-Sophie Cosquéric
anne-sophie@alizerp.com + 33 (0)1 42 68 86 41
