Galderma’s $650 million bet on U.S. manufacturing captures Europe’s new investment playbook

In today’s CEO Daily: Diane Brady interviews Galderma’s CEO about planting deep roots in the U.S. market.

The big leadership story: Do CEOs actually matter? The markets: Down globally as bond yields edge higher Plus: All the news and watercooler chat from Fortune .

Good morning .

The English are coming.

So are the Dutch, Germans, Danish, Swiss and other Europeans driving growth in foreign direct investment in the U.S. right now.

FDI rose by $266 billion to $5.86 trillion at the end of 2025, with Europe accounting for much of the increase and manufacturing remaining the largest target.

We know why it’s happening: Companies want access to the world’s deepest consumer market and pool of capital, along with U.S. talent—and, of course, manufacturing on American soil is a hedge against tariffs.

It’s good news for policymakers looking for tangible wins.

Several European CEOs have told me their goal is to build deeply-rooted American businesses.

Galderma is a case in point.

The Swiss dermatology company, whose brands range from Cetaphil and Alastin to injectable fillers such as Sculptra and Restylane, generated $5.24 billion in revenue last year.

The U.S. accounted for 40% of those sales and is its fastest-growing market.

Galderma announced last year that it will invest more than $650 million in U.S. manufacturing through 2030.

“If you want to succeed, you have to succeed in the U.S.,” CEO Flemming Ørnskov told me. Ørnskov’s first priority was access to R&D talent.