Our Story
Zug Pharma Group
A Community of sociable, Zug-based, Pharma folk
We started in August 2021. Marc and Karen had worked together at Shire and when, by chance, they bumped into each other discussion turned to catching up on what had become of former colleagues. The realisation that many had moved on but stayed in the Zug area led to the drive to set up a community of sociable Zug based Pharma folk - hopefully with a whatsApp group and a regular meeting time and place the group could grow enough to sustain a regular gathering.
From that initial group of 10, the group has steadily grown. There are now over 1300 people on the WhatsApp group and a vibrant community that goes beyond Pharma to include Medtech, consumer healthcare and other life sciences
In 2025 the journey will continue. Now established as a verein the Zug Pharma Group will look to engage members in content to further build the community - through monthly content focused gatherings and an annual Zug summit meeting.
Mission and purpose
The Zug Pharma Group's Mission is to build a vibrant community of Zug based life science professionals.
We aim to do this by focusing on 3 distinct pillars:
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Create community - finding ways to engage and introduce people and finding common ground. The group intentionally covers both personal and professional opportunities to share, support and collaborate
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Support the development of Zug as a hub for life sciences. The group partners with the Canton of Zug and seeks to create opportunities to develop capability and understanding and enable others to recognise the expertise and talent that is here.
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As a community we are looking to engage and support the broader community and have chosen to do this by supporting schools to educate and inspire school children on life sciences.
Timeline
2021: Zug Pharma Group founded. Regular monthly gathering set up.
2022-23: The group doubled in size every 9 months, soon reaching the maximum allowed in a WhatsApp group. A closed LinkedIn group was set up.
2024: WhatsApp community set up and the group becomes a verein in August 2024
