About AFT

What we do

Pharmaceuticals with a difference

With a guiding principle of working to improve your health, we deliver pharmaceuticals that make a real difference to people’s health.

Here at AFT Pharmaceuticals, our company vision is simple: to develop innovative products that help people. We do this by seeing opportunities that others may have missed, and by filling gaps in the market with innovative products that can provide positive health outcomes for those who need them.

Our success is built on research and development. R&D is more than ‘corporate speak’ for us: it’s at the heart of what we do in developing new products or improving existing ones. This has allowed us to successfully grow our business year after year, and crucially, to meet the health needs of people in Australasia and around the globe.

We’ve invested a lot of money on R&D. That’s where the real bang is.

Hartley Atkinson, Founder and Managing Director
Our history

From ‘go’ to global in under 20 years

Husband and wife team Hartley and Marree Atkinson form AFT Pharmaceuticals, the small Kiwi company that dreamed big. In August that year, we celebrate a huge milestone – our first sales.

We acquire our first wholly owned AFT Pharmaceutical products. We also acquire part ownership of two South African pharmaceutical companies and a wholesaler – these are successfully sold in 2004.
AFT Pharmaceuticals is established in Australia. A big move for us back then, but Australia is now our second home. We also begin our own drug development work and file our first two global patents.
Our little New Zealand company hits the big time. We sign a joint venture drug development agreement with a company in the European Union, expanding our global reach phenomenally.
AFT secures an out-licensing deal for three of our own products in South East Asia. By December, our first product launches are underway in Malaysia. Things are on the up and up!
Arise Maxigesic® AFT’s world-first combination analgesic is launched in New Zealand. This groundbreaking pharmaceutical is a roaring success and is soon out-licensed to Eastern Europe.
Group sales increase to NZ$50 million. We launch preservative-free HYLO-FRESH and HYLO-FORTE eye drops in Australia and New Zealand, which is at the forefront of our strong growth in the Eye Care category over the following years.
We keep on expanding. By now, AFT Pharmaceutical’s distribution and out-licensing agreements have expanded significantly to include 42 countries in Australasia and around the globe.

Maxigesic® is launched in Australia. We discover a major formulation error in competitive cold and flu products, published globally. Milford Asset Management (NZ) and Capital Royalty (USA) collectively invest US$12M in equity.

AFT Pharmaceuticals is publicly listed on the ASX and NZX stock exchanges. We commission independent surveys showing widespread concerns about the use of codeine in over-the-counter painkillers.

Maxigesic® PE is launched in New Zealand – a patented combination of paracetamol, ibuprofen and phenylephrine that provides triple action cold, flu and sinus relief. We also introduce NovaTears®; unique preservative-free eye drops specifically designed for evaporative dry eye disease.

The COVID-19 pandemic dominates headlines around the world, but AFT doesn’t stand still throughout this challenging year for global health care. We launch Maxigesic® IV in Australia and New Zealand, while licensing deals for international markets continue to grow. NovaTears® + Omega-3 is an exciting addition to our growing eye care product range. And to top it all off, AFT breaks through the $100M revenue barrier to achieve record company earnings.

It has been a busy start to the year with a number of new product launches in Australia and New Zealand to help drive further growth for AFT Pharmaceuticals.

Meet the team

The Board

Management team

Careers

Join our team

We’re always looking for talented people, please have a look at the careers we currently have available by visiting our profile on the below Careers website.

Read More
AFT Pharmaceuticals Team
FAQ's

Frequently Asked Questions

You can find further information about our products on the Product page, first selecting the country/region relevant to you.
No we do not sell direct to consumers, but please visit our individual brand websites to view stockists who you can purchase from in-store or online.
Please use the enquiry form on the Contact Us Us page and someone will be in touch.
If we have any current vacancies, you can find them on the Careers page.
Head to our Investors website to find out more about how you can invest with AFT Pharmaceuticals.