How important is India in Alcon’s growth strategy?
India is one of our most important markets globally and is by far the biggest of all our emerging markets. If you include China, then I would say China and India are our two biggest emerging markets and strategically very important for us in terms of driving growth in the long run. Beyond commercial operations, India is central to our training and education efforts through initiatives like the Phaco Development Program, which trains young cataract surgeons. We have also built our GCC here, making India our second-largest employee base outside US among non-manufacturing locations.
What role will India play in Alcon’s next phase of growth?
India will remain a growth market because the unmet need for eye care is enormous. Manufacturing is something we continuously evaluate as part of our global footprint. As part of that assessment, we look at many countries, and India is one of them. India is one of the earliest markets where we introduce innovation. We will keep expanding our GCC by adding more global functions. In India, we operate through two franchises-surgical and vision care. Surgical is the larger business and covers cataract, refractive, retina and glaucoma. We aim to enable access to advanced cataract care for up to 6 million people in India by 2030.
Are eye disorders increasingly affecting GenZ and Gen Alpha?
Yes, lifestyle is playing a much bigger role. We are seeing rising myopia among children because they spend less time outdoors and more time on screens. We are also seeing more dry eye disease among people aged 20 to 50 because prolonged screen use reduces blinking. Data suggests that about 23% of school children in India are estimated to be myopic, while dry eye prevalence range between 25% and 58%.How do you view India relative to China?
The number of cataract surgeries in India is much higher than in China and awareness is more. India has a significant advantage in English-speaking talent. We can introduce innovation in India faster because regulatory approvals are quicker. But the care model is different: India is mainly private care, while China relies on the public system, where governments seek to control costs.
Could eye care eventually become more predictive and personalised?
That’s where the industry is headed. We are looking at digital platforms that bring together patient data and provide personalised recommendations like, for example, warning patients about dry eye risks while travelling or seasonal allergies.