Inductee

Roger Griggs

Richwood Pharmaceuticals, Griggs Holdings

Roger Griggs is a serial healthcare entrepreneur with more than four decades of experience identifying, acquiring, developing, and commercializing prescription medicines and consumer healthcare products.

Griggs began his career as a high school football coach and social studies teacher after earning a Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana State University and a master’s degree in secondary education from Indiana University. In 1982, he left education to enter the pharmaceutical industry as a field sales representative for Lederle Laboratories, later part of Wyeth and Pfizer. He advanced through a series of sales and management positions before joining the emerging Russ Pharmaceuticals in 1988. At Russ, he served initially as Director of Institutional Sales and later as National Sales Manager. The company’s principal product was Lortab®, a prescription analgesic, and the business was subsequently acquired by UCB Pharma.

In 1991, Griggs founded Richwood Pharmaceutical Company, initially focusing on products for pain management and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Throughout his career, he has demonstrated a distinctive ability to identify promising products and connect them with important unmet medical needs. He and the physicians, scientists, and executives with whom he has worked have introduced or marketed more than 30 prescription medicines and eight nonprescription healthcare products.

Among the most notable products associated with Griggs and his companies is Adderall®, which became a leading treatment for ADHD. Other successful prescription products included AccuHist® for cough and cold symptoms; Amicar® for bleeding disorders; Duet® and StuartNatal® prescription prenatal products; and Lysteda® for heavy menstrual bleeding. His companies also marketed or developed established pharmaceutical products such as methotrexate and calcium leucovorin, as well as pain-management products including Darvon®, Darvocet®, Roxanol®, Roxicodone®, Oramorph®, and Zipsor®.

Griggs’ businesses also introduced successful consumer healthcare products. These included MyClyns®, a personal antimicrobial spray named Drug Store News’ 2009 Retail Product of the Year; LuciPlex®, a neurological-health product selected as a finalist for the 2017 SupplySide West Brain Health Product of the Year; and NoctoPlex®, developed for occasional or situational sleep difficulties.

Richwood merged with Shire Pharmaceuticals in 1997, and the products originating from the company ultimately generated peak annual sales of approximately $1.5 billion.

In 2002, Griggs and Gilbert Gonzales, M.D., founded DECA—the Drug Enhancement Corporation of America—which served as a pharmaceutical licensing and development platform and helped launch several healthcare companies. These included:

PediaMed Pharmaceuticals, which focused on pediatric medicines in areas such as cough and cold, autism, and ocular disorders. PediaMed was acquired by Connetics Corporation in 2004, and its products generated peak annual sales of approximately $40 million.

Integrity Pharmaceutical Corporation, a women’s-health company whose portfolio included antifungal medicines, prescription prenatal vitamins, and antibiotics. Its products achieved peak annual sales of approximately $35 million.

Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals, which focused on oncology, pain management, and women’s health and achieved peak annual sales of approximately $185 million in 2012.

In 2005, Griggs founded Union Springs, LLC, where he applied pharmaceutical development and clinical-validation standards to nonprescription and naturally derived healthcare products. The company’s objective was to provide healthcare professionals and consumers with clinically supported natural products offering demonstrable patient benefits.

Union Springs Healthcare, established in 2014, later merged with Enzymotec, an Israeli-based nutrition and healthcare company, in 2017. Following a series of subsequent corporate transactions involving Enzymotec and its product portfolio, the Union Springs products and development pipeline were returned to the company as part of a settlement.

In October 2019, Union Springs Healthcare became part of Medella Springs Healthcare. The transaction brought together a portfolio of established and developmental products, including NoctoPlex® for occasional sleep difficulties; LuciPlex® for neurological and cognitive health; Addivance®, developed to support attention and behavioral health; and Calmposure®, developed for intermittent or situational anxiety and stress.

Griggs has received numerous honors for his contributions to healthcare entrepreneurship. In 1997, he was named an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in Healthcare. In 2005, he was recognized as Deal Maker of the Year in Ohio, and in 2007, Northern Kentucky University honored him as a Master Entrepreneur. He has also been inducted into the entrepreneurial halls of fame associated with Essex Woodlands Health Ventures and Blue Chip Venture Company.

During his career, Griggs has served on the boards of several pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including Shire Pharmaceuticals, New River Pharmaceuticals, and Prism Pharmaceuticals. He currently serves on the board of Alphyn Biologics, a dermatology-focused biotechnology company, and has advised numerous entrepreneurs, inventors, and emerging healthcare businesses.

His civic, educational, and philanthropic service has included membership on the board of Duke University’s End-of-Life Care Program, Northern Kentucky University’s Entrepreneurial Studies Institute, and the national board of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths. He is also a member of Queen City Angels, a Cincinnati-based angel investment organization.

Griggs has served as a guest lecturer for university classes and entrepreneurial programs at Purdue University, the University of Mississippi, Hillsdale College, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Kentucky, and Northern Kentucky University.

An instrument-rated private pilot, Griggs is also an author. In 2021, he published his first book, Royal in My Blood: Graham’s Story. He is currently writing a book chronicling the creation, development, and commercialization of Adderall, which he plans to publish in 2026.

Roger and his wife, Kathy, live near Crittenden, Kentucky, and are active in their Christian Church. They have three children and five grandchildren. In 2001, they established the Griggs Foundation, which supports faith-based, healthcare, and other philanthropic initiatives.

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