Christopher Martin joins the Board of Directors, with Mark Zappia and Jim Willis joining as Senior Vice President of Commercial and Vice President of Sales, reuniting the team behind the launch of Ohtuvayre®, one of the most successful specialty pharmaceutical launches in recent industry history
SEATTLE and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 12, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Achieve Life Sciences, Inc. (Achieve and the Company) (Nasdaq: ACHV), a late-stage specialty pharmaceutical company focused on the global development and commercialization of cytisinicline as a treatment for nicotine dependence, today announced three senior leadership appointments. Christopher Martin has joined the Company’s Board of Directors. Mark Zappia has joined as Senior Vice President, Commercial, where he will spearhead the Company’s commercial function. Jim Willis has joined as Vice President of Sales and Sales Enablement, where he will lead the field force.
Mr. Martin most recently served as Chief Commercial Officer at Verona Pharma, where he oversaw the commercial strategy for Ohtuvayre® (ensifentrine), a differentiated therapy for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Mr. Zappia led commercial operations during the launch, and Mr. Willis led the national field force during the same period. Verona Pharma was acquired by Merck & Co. for $10.8 billion in October 2025.
Today’s announcements follow Dr. Andrew D. Goldberg’s appointment as Chief Executive Officer in April 2026 and the recent financing of up to $354 million, which included $180 million upfront and up to $174 million from milestone-based warrants tied to FDA approval of cytisinicline. Together, they reflect a deliberate build of the leadership Achieve needs as it moves toward commercialization.
“Bringing Chris, Mark, and Jim to Achieve is one of the most consequential decisions of my first month as CEO and reflects our evolution into a commercial-stage organization,” said Andrew D. Goldberg, MD, Chief Executive Officer of Achieve Life Sciences. “Having anchored Verona Pharma’s U.S. market transition, I saw firsthand the discipline and excellence this team brings to a commercial launch. We are addressing one of the largest preventable public health problems we know, and the experience this team brings positions Achieve to deliver cytisinicline to the patients who need it and the prescribers who care for them.”