July 24, 2025 | BOMA International, Ella Krygiel
The current administration’s proposed 200% tariff on imported pharmaceuticals is forcing Big Pharma companies to invest in U.S. manufacturing—quickly. According to AInvest, “With a grace period of up to 18 months to comply, companies like Eli Lilly and Novartis are accelerating their manufacturing investments, creating a stark divide between firms positioned to thrive and those vulnerable to costly disruptions.” In response, pharmaceutical companies are rethinking supply chains, operations and facility development strategies. Sara McTyeire, Executive Director and Head of the North Carolina Market, King Street Properties believes success in this shifting landscape hinges on readiness. “The ability to deliver highly specialized facilities at speed will define who leads in the future of drug manufacturing,” she says. In the conversation below, McTyeire offers her perspective on the industry’s pivot toward domestic production—what’s driving it, how companies are adapting and how initiatives like her company’s Pathway model aim to support that transition.
The Impact of Pharmaceutical Onshoring on the U.S.
“The momentum around pharmaceutical onshoring has fundamentally reshaped the long-term outlook for U.S.-based drug manufacturing — and real estate is at the heart of it,” says McTyeire. GlobeSt. highlights this trend, noting that the United States spent $127 billion on pharmaceutical imports in the first four months of 2025, a 74% increase over the same period last year. This surge has reignited interest in onshoring as companies look to reduce long-term costs and stabilize supply chains. For context, Healthcare Dive reports that the focus on pharmaceutical onshoring is neither a recent development nor a strictly partisan issue. “The federal government has deployed billions of dollars since the early 2010s to fund investments in pharmacy and drug manufacturing innovation,” they state. McTyeire agrees, adding:
“The urgency sparked by COVID-19 accelerated the need for rapid, secure and scalable domestic production. That urgency hasn’t faded. If anything, it’s evolved into a strategic priority as onshoring is critical for supply chain resilience.”
Strategies for Adapting to Pharmaceutical Onshoring
Although Healthcare Dive points out that the effort to onshore pharmaceuticals is not new—and that there’s been political pressure for this change for over a decade—it’s also clear that moving supply chains back home has been a complex challenge. As an NPR podcast with experts like Sydney Lupkin, Geoffrey Joyce and Chris Middendorf highlights, the road to reshoring has been far from smooth. Joyce and Middendorf emphasize that significant incentives such as tax breaks and subsidies, will be crucial to encouraging U.S. companies to invest in reshoring efforts. They mention that moving factories, even for just one drug, requires immense resources and time.
Beyond just building new facilities, companies face the additional challenge of qualifying those spaces, establishing procedures and ensuring that the drugs manufactured in these new environments meet rigorous safety standards. As the experts point out, the stakes are incredibly high—poor manufacturing could have serious consequences for patients.
In the face of these concerns, McTyeire, Executive Director and Head of the North Carolina Market of King Street Properties, shares how her company is addressing these needs with innovative solutions:
- Recognizing Industry Needs: In 2019, King Street launched the Pathway platform to address the increasing demand for purpose-built biomanufacturing real estate.
- Flexible Space Solutions: The platform provides customizable, move-in-ready space within multi-building, multi-tenant campuses specifically designed for biomanufacturing.
- Faster Occupancy Timelines: By streamlining acquisition, permitting and construction, the model allows companies to accelerate occupancy by 2–3 years, providing a meaningful advantage in time-sensitive life sciences work.
“Since then, we’ve expanded the platform and now offer space in Greater Boston and the Research Triangle in North Carolina,” McTyeire shares. “The demand is clear — and growing. As this onshoring trend continues, Pathway is proving essential not only for ensuring U.S. competitiveness, but also for creating the infrastructure needed to support the next generation of medical innovation.”
Investment Trends in U.S. Manufacturing
As discussed earlier, Big Pharma companies like Eli Lilly are acting quickly to ramp up its domestic manufacturing, particularly in areas like North Carolina. McTyeire provides her take on this trend:
“We’ve experienced strong interest at our properties in the Triangle region of North Carolina and consistent touring activity. This level of engagement reflects a healthy and growing demand, and we’re optimistic about the market’s continued strength. The region is consistently recognized for its quality of living, growth, a specialized & experienced biomanufacturing workforce, and top tier research universities – all highly desirable qualities for life science companies.”
An article by Pharma Voice reinforces this perspective, explaining that the life sciences sector has steadily established itself in Raleigh over the past decades, with momentum accelerating in recent years. Their research points out that Raleigh’s relatively lower costs and ample available space make it a high-demand biotech hub.
McTyeire agrees, noting, “Overall, Raleigh is well-positioned, but success will depend on thoughtful execution and close attention to what advanced manufacturing companies actually need — not just today, but 18–24 months from now.”
Interested in more content like this? Read our recent articles, The Promise and Challenges of Medtail or Are We Leveraging AI Enough in Healthcare?. You can view all this content and more when you click here to sign up for our Medical newsletter!