Denmark's 'Novo Town' holds its breath as Wegovy fever fades

STORY: Denmark’s Kalundborg, known as "Novo Town", is used to ever-expanding facilities to meet demand for Novo Nordisk's Wegovy weight-loss drug.

What’s less familiar is the worry that this titan drugmaker plans to cut 5,000 jobs in its home market.

Tina Beck-Nilsson is the town’s deputy mayor.

“I think everyone just took our breath in when we heard how many people they have to lay off because how is it going to affect us here in Kalundborg?"

Novo Nordisk’s launch of Wegovy in 2021 made it Europe’s most valuable company.

Since then, fierce competition from U.S. rival Eli Lilly, and a growing number of copycats have slowed Wegovy sales.

And Novo Nordisk's share price has plunged by more than $400 billion.

The pharmaceutical remains central to the Danish economy that still outpaces much of the euro zone…

But the end of its rapid growth has weighed.

At its peak, Novo's market value exceeded Denmark's entire economic output.

The central bank on Wednesday (September 24) cut its growth forecasts for 2025-2027, citing U.S. tariffs and weaker pharmaceutical sector growth. Related Videos

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Kalundborg is the core of Novo Nordisk's production empire - and local house prices have spiked in a market which has now slowed.

But its mayor Martin Damm thinks that the impact will be short-term.

"Right now they are expanding, building new factories for 65 billion Danish crowns. When they are finished, I don't think they will have them empty. I think they will have people inside to produce, so they can sell what they are doing in the world.”

Novo Nordisk employs around 5,500 people in this town of 16,500.