Our Founder – Mahen Acharya
(October 26, 1949 – September 1, 2021)
SteriMax traces its roots to founder Mahen “Mike” Acharya, a pharmacist who immigrated to Canada in the 1970s with a Bachelor of Pharmacy from the University of Bath.
After building and operating a successful chain of retail pharmacies in Ontario, later sold to Shoppers Drug Mart, Mike identified a gap in drug distribution for independent pharmacies. He founded Trent Drugs (Wholesale) Ltd. with a focus on high-value, customer-driven service.
Over two decades, Trent grew into Canada’s third-largest national drug wholesaler, operating seven distribution centres across five provinces, before being acquired in 2005 by AmerisourceBergen.
SteriMax emerged in parallel during the 1990s, created to address unmet needs in niche, small-volume sterile injectable products. Its early growth included the acquisition of five injectable products from Novartis in 2004, solidifying its market position.
Today, SteriMax continues to grow under a leadership team experienced across development, manufacturing, regulatory, and commercialization, and is backed by a strong product pipeline in generic and specialty products.
Our Team
Our leadership team combines deep industry expertise with a shared responsibility to deliver essential medicines reliably and safely.
Samir Acharya
President & CEO
As President and CEO of SteriMax, Samir has leveraged his over 2 decades of experience in the pharmaceutical industry to lead the company through strategic growth and transformation. Samir began his career at Trent Drugs (Wholesale) Ltd., gaining hands-on experience in pharmaceutical distribution. After graduating from Queen’s University in 2001, he moved to Basel, Switzerland, where he conducted cancer research at Hoffmann-La Roche, resulting in a publication in Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics. Samir later returned to Trent Drugs, progressing into senior leadership roles and, following its acquisition by AmerisourceBergen, served as Vice President, Health Systems, leading hospital market expansion and driving over $30 million in revenue growth. Samir holds a BSc (Honours) in Biochemistry from Queen’s University.
Edward Rajasingham
Chief Commercial Officer
Edward is a seasoned executive with extensive experience across the U.S. and Canadian pharmaceutical industries. He has held progressive leadership roles in sales, marketing, and business development spanning both retail pharmacy and pharmaceutical manufacturing. As Chief Commercial Officer at SteriMax, Edward is responsible for driving market presence and revenue growth through the strategic alignment of all commercial operations. Throughout his 25+ year career, Edward has focused on building and motivating high-performing teams to support patient access to affordable healthcare and essential medicines. Edward holds a Master of Business Administration from Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada.
Scott Niewland
Chief Financial Officer
Scott joined SteriMax in 2015 and is responsible for finance, information technology, business analytics, and risk management. He brings over 20 years of progressive experience in finance and operations, with prior leadership roles in finance and strategic sourcing at Tim Hortons and Rogers. Scott’s experience and leadership have played a key role in supporting SteriMax’s growth and operational maturity. Scott holds a BBA from Austin Peay State University, where he was captain of the Division I golf team and was awarded Academic All-American honours. He earned a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) designation in 2004.
Ritesh Acharya
Chief Scientific Officer
Ritesh joined SteriMax in 2012 after practicing as a licensed pharmacist. He started his journey at SteriMax by leading special projects in product innovation, business development, and hospital services where he built strong credibility with clients and suppliers. Ritesh now oversees research and product development, technology transfer, regulatory, clinical activities, as well as the project management office, bringing scientific expertise, entrepreneurial thinking, and strong leadership to the organization. Ritesh holds a Master of Pharmacy from the UCL School of Pharmacy in London, with a focus on pharmaceutical research and industry.
Sima Acharya
Chief of Staff
Sima is a dynamic leader with over 15 years of experience across industries and functions. She began her career in marketing before joining Deloitte, where she advised clients on large-scale transformation across Financial Services, Healthcare, and Higher Education. She later joined Royal Bank of Canada, supporting enterprise transformation and strategic HR. Prior to SteriMax, Sima led product strategy and innovation at EZRA. She brings a cross-industry perspective and a strong track record of driving strategic change, innovation, and organizational effectiveness. Sima holds an MBA from Case Western Reserve University and a B.Comm from McMaster University.
Craig Potvin
EVP, Sales & Marketing
Craig is a performance-driven leader with over 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and medical device industry. Craig began his career in pharmaceutical procurement working at the two largest Canadian GPOs (HealthPRO & Medbuy). Craig has held senior roles in a number of large organizations including 12 years at Fresenius Kabi ending with his role as Vice President, Sales, Marketing, and Business Development, he then moved to Leo Pharma as the Business Unit Director leading their Thrombosis business unit in Canada. Craig also worked at SteriMax in 2010/2011 before rejoining SteriMax in 2023 to lead our Sales and Marketing teams. Craig holds a degree in Health Sciences (BHSc) from The University of Western Ontario.
Edward Morrison
EVP, Business Development & Portfolio Strategy
Edward drives corporate performance at SteriMax through portfolio expansion, international sales, partnerships, and commercialization. He plays a central role shaping long-term strategy, through building a differentiated and sustainable pharmaceutical portfolio. He brings expertise in licensing, market dynamics, and data-driven portfolio management, with a strong track record of execution. Since joining SteriMax, he has held leadership roles across Business Development and Marketing. Prior to SteriMax, he was a Consultant at IQVIA, advising clients on commercial strategy. Edward combines scientific, commercial, and financial expertise to drive results. He holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School and an M.Sc. in Biochemistry from McMaster University.
Hamed Ghanei
EVP, Innovation Division
Hamed has over 15 years of experience in specialty pharmaceuticals, venture funds, and healthcare investment banking. Throughout his career, he has led the evaluation of over 500 licensing and M&A opportunities and has been involved in five commercial product launches. He has successfully negotiated over 20 transactions with a total value exceeding $1 billion. Hamed currently serves on the board of directors of Life Sciences Partnership Canada and GlycoNet. He holds a B.Sc. from the University of Waterloo, a M.Sc. in Microbiology and Biochemistry from the University of Guelph, and a Ph.D. in Medical Biophysics from the University of Toronto.
