Epiderm was formed in 1992 following Australia’s successful bid to host the World Congress of Dermatology.

Initially, the company was called the 19th World Congress of Dermatology Limited, with its directors being Alan Cooper, Robin Marks and William Ryman.  The original members of the company were William Land, who was the company secretary, and Brian De’Ambrosis.

The successful hosting of the 19th World Congress of Dermatology in 1997, resulted in a significant surplus, which was retained by the company and, at this time, the company was renamed the Australian Dermatology Research and Education Foundation (ADREF).  The funds were invested and members of the dermatology community were invited to apply for research or educational grants.  Epiderm was renamed and re-branded in 2006, with the kind assistance of Cato Purnell Partners.

In recent years, due to other commitments, Robin Marks and William Ryman have resigned their positions as directors.  Alan Cooper has continued as chairman, and Greg Crosland, David Wong and Stephen Shumack, all past or current honorary secretaries of the Australasian College of Dermatologists, joined the board.  Susan Doyle, chair of the Commonwealth Government Employees Superannuation Fund, has also kindly agreed to serve on the board and has been a particularly valuable resource for matters of corporate governance and appropriate management of invested capital.

As part of its education charter, Epiderm hosts an annual clinical meeting for dermatologists, dermatology trainees and dermatology nurses.  The aim of the meeting is to explore recent developments in the therapeutics in an interactive forum.

Epiderm seeks to support innovative dermatological research projects and aims to allocate up to $100,000 each year to the most meritorious applications, as determined by the directors.
 

Goldman Sachs J.B. Were Investment Objective for Epiderm Investments

Create and preserve Epiderm wealth by producing superior inflation-adjusted returns over the long term (five or more years). We seek to achieve this by outperforming the S&P/ASX 300 Accumulation Index over complete market cycles while delivering an above-average yield with a high level of franking and the potential for capital management. Our aim is to outperform in weak markets and capture a major portion of the upside in rising markets. Portfolio performance may not keep pace when a market advance is driven by momentum investing due to our longer time investment horizon, disciplined approach to valuation and the Portfolio’s income emphasis.