What Nextep does

Nextep is a Paris-based healthcare consulting firm founded in 1998, organized as a French SARL with €250,000 capital and registered at 18/20 Place de la Madeleine. The firm specializes in four core service lines: Affaires Publiques (Public Affairs), Market Access, Stratégie et Transformation, and Formation, Information & Publication. Its customer base spans pharmaceutical majors (Sanofi, Novartis, GSK, Janssen/J&J, Bristol Myers Squibb, Pierre Fabre, Chiesi, Grifols), healthcare groups (Air Liquide, KRYS Group), and a broader ecosystem of medtechs, biotechs, diagnostics, medical device firms, e-health startups, patient associations, complementary health insurers, and public-sector stakeholders in France and Europe.

Nextep has no proprietary technology platform; its offering is delivered by senior consultants and an Expert Committee through project-based advisory mandates with negotiated, non-publicly-disclosed pricing. Content products (Pharma Express newsletter, Nextep Publishing platform, Opinion Santé interviews, Nextep Webinars) function as thought-leadership and lead-generation assets rather than standalone revenue streams. The firm is a member of the AFCL (Association Française des Conseils en Lobbying) since 2011 and operates with FCPA and Sunshine Act compliance, enabling it to serve US-headquartered healthcare clients operating in France.

Since December 2024, Nextep has been a wholly owned European subsidiary of ProductLife Group (PLG), an international life sciences services platform spanning 50+ countries directly. In March 2025, Nextep entered an exclusive partnership with BOTdesign to apply synthetic data to therapeutic innovation market access — its first material AI-adjacent capability. Recent additions to its Expert Committee (Eric Baseilhac in September 2024 and Valérie Perruchot Garcia in April 2025) reinforce its regulatory and policy bench.

Name

Nextep

Legal name

Nextep

Website

https://nextep-health.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nextep is a Paris-based healthcare consulting firm offering public affairs, market access, strategy, and training services to pharmaceutical, medtech, biotech, and public-sector clients in France and Europe. Since 2024 it has operated as a subsidiary of ProductLife Group.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Healthcare Consulting

NAICS

Other Management Consulting Services (541618)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Healthcare & Life Sciences PR (BPAFADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

KOL Engagement & Medical Education (Advisory Boards/CME Support) (HLAGALAM), Healthcare & Life Sciences PR (MPAAADAD)

Keywords

• Healthcare consulting
• Public affairs advisory
• Market access services
• Pharmaceutical strategy
• Regulatory affairs consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Strategic Consulting Services: Professional consulting services delivered by experts in healthcare strategy, market access, public affairs, and transformation. Revenue generated through project-based engagements and advisory mandates with pharmaceutical companies, medtech firms, biotechs, patient associations, and healthcare institutions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Nextep is a French healthcare consulting firm that advises pharmaceutical companies, medtechs, biotechs, e-health startups, patient associations, and public health institutions across four expertises: Public Affairs, Market Access, Strategy and Transformation, and Training/Information/Publication. The firm also publishes strategic analysis content (Pharma Express) covering economic, political, and regulatory developments in the pharmaceutical sector.

Product overview

Nextep est un cabinet de conseil expert en santé offrant une gamme de services de conseil stratégique. L'offre se compose de quatre expertises principales : Affaires Publiques, Market Access, Stratégie et Transformation, et Formation Information & Publication. Ces services sont soutenus par des produits de contenu comme Pharma Express (lettres d'analyse), Nextep Publishing (plateforme de publication), Opinion Santé (série d'entretiens), et les Webinars Nextep. Le cabinet accompagne depuis plus de 25 ans les industriels du médicament, medtechs, startups e-santé, associations de patients et institutionnels dans leurs enjeux stratégiques.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Pharma Express: Free analysis letters providing strategic vision on pharmaceutical sector economic, political, and regulatory developments.
• Nextep Publishing

Products and services

• Public Affairs (Affaires Publiques) Strategic public affairs advisory for healthcare stakeholders, covering public-private interactions, health policy, ethical practice, and representation before French and European public authorities. Targeted at pharmaceutical companies, medtechs, biotechs, patient associations, and public health institutions.
• Market Access Outcomes-based strategic advisory for pharmaceutical and medtech clients on go-to-market strategy, HTA processes, clinical evidence development, pricing, and reimbursement pathways in France and Europe.
• Strategy and Transformation Holistic strategic and organizational transformation advisory for healthcare industry leaders, supporting performance improvement and strategic planning in France and internationally.
• Training, Information and Publication Custom training programs and strategic analysis publications designed to deepen understanding of the institutional healthcare ecosystem, its regulatory mechanisms, and the pharmaceutical sector environment. Targets executives and teams in healthcare organizations.
• Pharma Express Subscription-based strategic analysis newsletter offering executives a global view of pharmaceutical sector economic, political, and regulatory developments, with a companion Pharma Express Jurisprudence legal publication. Free for the first 3 months for new subscribers.

Named customers13 records

Segments10 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• BOTdesignflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 March 2025BOTdesign and Nextep Health concluded a unique and exclusive partnership to leverage artificial data for access to therapeutic innovations. This partnership combines BOTdesign's synthetic data capabilities with Nextep's market access and regulatory expertise.
• ProductLife Group (PLG)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 December 2024Since 2024, Nextep has been part of ProductLife Group (PLG), an international reference partner for life sciences companies in product development and lifecycle management. This acquisition accelerates Nextep's international development and provides access to PLG's global network spanning over 50 countries with own resources and 150+ countries through partners.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Avalere Health: US-headquartered healthcare strategy and policy consultancy with European market access capabilities. Comparable in offering market access, public affairs, and policy advisory services to life sciences clients.
• ProductLife Group (PLG): International life sciences consulting and outsourcing partner across 50+ countries. Now Nextep's parent company; offers overlapping regulatory, market access, and product lifecycle services at a much larger global scale.
• Charles River Associates (Life Sciences): Global management consultancy with a dedicated life sciences practice covering pricing, market access, and commercial strategy for pharma and biotech. Larger competitor competing for the same strategic advisory mandates.
• APCO Worldwide (Healthcare): Global public affairs and strategic communications consultancy with a healthcare practice. Comparable in healthcare public affairs and stakeholder engagement work for pharma clients.
• FleishmanHillard (Healthcare): Global PR and public affairs network with a substantial healthcare practice serving pharmaceutical companies. Overlaps with Nextep's public affairs and communications offerings.

Direct peers

• CBPartners: Specialized market access and pricing consultancy for pharmaceutical and biotech companies globally. Direct competitor in the market access and pricing strategy space.
• NDA Group: Regulatory and HTA consulting firm serving pharmaceutical and medical device companies across Europe. Closest peer in market access, regulatory strategy, and HTA evidence work.
• Vintura: European healthcare consultancy specializing in market access, strategy, and transformation for pharma, medtech, and biotech. Directly comparable to Nextep as a European boutique focused on similar service lines and customer segments.
• MAP BioPharma: UK-based market access consulting firm supporting pharma with pricing, reimbursement, and HTA submissions across Europe. Comparable service offering and customer base to Nextep.
• RJW & Partners: European pharmaceutical consultancy focused on pricing, reimbursement, and market access. Directly comparable boutique peer serving similar pharma clients across European markets.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nextep-health
• Xx.com/Nextep_Health

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nextep