Product Development
We work extensively with many leading FMCG brands and retail customers, developing new toiletry products or whole product ranges.
We can take you through the whole New Product Development (NPD) process from the very beginning (creative brainstorming and concept development) right through to delivering the finished stock to a retailer's or customer’s warehouse.
Our cross functional teams dedicated to NPD include:
- Development Chemists
- Packaging Technologists
- Account Managers
- Purchasing Team
- Quality Team
Creative Brainstorming / Concept Development
We invest in on-going lifestyle, trend and market reports to help us establish market gaps and identify new and future consumer product opportunities.
Keeping up to date with new global product launches ensures we have an informed picture of the entire creative market.
Concept / Product Research
All of our concept ideas are developed and tested to meet proven customer demand. We also offer real-life consumer trials through our market research resource.
Other product testing we carry out includes:
- User trials (both qauntitative and qualititave)
- Focus groups, in-depth interviews and in-store surveys
- Consumer panel testing
Formulation and Product Development
Heading our state-of-the-art development laboratories is a team of highly qualified and experienced development chemists. They are all passionate about their formulations yet understand the commercial constraints they need to work within.
Along with standard formulation and product development, the team seeks out fresh ingredients and inventive technologies to enable formulation of new and innovative products.
They regularly meet with cutting edge raw material suppliers and attend industry conferences, international trade shows and specialist training courses to gain as much in-depth knowledge as possible and to keep up with new industry developments. All our development chemists are also members of SCS (Society of Cosmetic Science).
Our team can provide:
- Raw material research and assessment
- Formulation and technical evaluation
- Extensive formulation database
- Advice on product claims and claim substantiation
- Stability, compatibility and weight loss testing
- Micro-testing (MIC studies and challenge testing) carried out in-house
- Coordination of toxicological and dermatological tests and any other claim substantiation tests
- Pilot trials and scale-up studies
- Process development and validation
- Collation of PIP documentation
Packaging Technology and Engineering Support
Our packaging technologists and engineers work together at all stages of the design, production and delivery process to achieve a cost-effective end product with maximum visual impact.
Our services include:
- Worldwide packaging sourcing and supply co-ordination
- Liaison with customers and design houses
- Advice on artwork and printing capabilities
- Packaging engineering
- Compatibility and weight loss testing
- Product fit-for-purpose testing
- Scale-up trials
- Transit tests
- Shelf-life and customer in-use testing
- Value re-engineering
- Technical advice and packaging solutions at all stages of the product lifecycle
Our packaging technologists regularly attend packaging trade shows and fairs to keep up to date with all the latest innovations and industry developments. They are also members of IoP (Institute of Packaging).
NPD and Expert Account Management
Each account is assigned a dedicated account manager, who champions each customer’s individual needs across the whole company, knowing their accounts inside and out.
Account managers also conduct competitor brand analysis, range reviews and actively explore new ideas for range extensions.
We use Microsoft Project throughout the business to track projects and have a dedicated NPD Coordinator keeping a close day-to-day check on all projects. The team also meets weekly to ensure project focus. As a result, we have a track record of on-time launches.