Experts from Japan and the US team up to make skincare with blood extracts, Arcade Beauty will acquire Groupe Rocher manufacturing facilities, LBB Specialties to sell Sudarshan pigments in US and Canada
🧪💋 Beauty Made FROM You
Personalized skincare is about to get a lot more personal, thanks to a newly formed strategic partnership among KOSÉ, I Peace, and Reju. The three companies are collaborating to produce custom skincare formulated with somatic stem cell extract—the cells in question coming from the individual consumer.
For KOSÉ, it’s a project that exemplifies the multinational beauty maker’s intent “to further expand its value propositions beyond the realm of beauty… [and into the] holistic well-being concept,” as this week’s media release about the partnership explains.
Before 2024 comes to a close, the three companies anticipate that they’ll be in the testing phase with both products and business aspects of the venture.
Here’s how it will work.
Japanese medical institutions with collect somatic cells from customers’ own blood. (KOSÉ and Reju are both headquartered in Japan; I Peace is in California, US.) “I Peace will generate, culture, and manage iPS cells from an individual's somatic cells using its extensive experience in operating personal iPS cell banking services employing its latest biotechnology and stringent safety protocols to ensure the highest quality,” according to the release. Reju will manufacture the cell extract (iPSF). And KOSÉ will formulate and manufacture the skincare, which will be additionally customized to meet consumer preferences for texture, product format, and more.
Understandably, these products do not fit in the consumer beauty sector. A footnote to this week’s media release clarifies that “Personalized beauty products resulting from this project will be provided through medical institutions under medical supervision, rather than being provided as cosmetics as defined by the Japanese Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Act.”
The initiative will however have very real implications impacting consumer expectations around longevity and regenerative skincare.
And we know that innovative biotech companies have introduced human-identical molecules into the general cosmetic ingredient marketplace in recent years. The My-Own Beauty Products venture from KOSÉ, I Peace, and Reju will likely make these sorts of ingredients more understandable and accepted by brand leaders and the end consumer.
🌺🏭Sample Size & beyond
In June, Arcade Beauty announced plans to acquire manufacturing facilities in Ploërmel, France, from Groupe Rocher.
For at least a year now, Arcade Beauty is owned by a consortium of global investment firms; and this acquisition is the company’s third deal involving full-sized product blending and filling capabilities.
Long known for specializing in fragrance sampling solutions, Arcade moved into blending and filling cosmetic products (both sample- and full-size) with the 2011 acquisition of Brazil-based manufacturer Mappel. And in 2018, the company acquired the operating assets of Suite-K in Dayton, New Jersey, US, which added fragrance blending and full-sized fragrance filling capabilities. “With Ploërmel, we will have the equivalent in France,” Arcade Beauty CEO, Carl Allain, told me in a recent interview.
And now, he says, “Ploërmel completes this strategic move…. to extend our product and service offering beyond samples.”
Groupe Rocher began speaking with prospective site buyers in September of 2023; and then in June of this year moved into exclusive negotiations with Arcade Beauty, due in larger part to “a shared desire to guarantee production of the group's current volumes, the acquisition of all the facilities at the Ploërmel
plant, and the reinstatement of all jobs,” according to a press release issued by the France-based fragrance, skincare, and color cosmetics maker.
In our interview, Arcade Beauty CEO, Carl Allain confirmed as much, saying, “We will have a long-term exclusive manufacturing agreement for Yves Rocher fragrances, which we will complement with other customers, focusing on collector fragrances and miniatures for which there is strong demand.”
🎨🌎Pigments Distribution
Effect pigments, fillers, oxides and lakes from Sudarshan will now be sold in the US and Canada by LBB Specialties. These product lines are specifically for use color cosmetics, personal care products, and home care, according to Wednesday’s press release.
“Partnering with LBB Specialties is a strategic move that aligns perfectly with our goals,” says Helen Hatcher, Head of Sales & Operations at Sudarshan, in her remarks to the press.
“LBB Specialties’ extensive network and technical expertise make them an ideal partner to expand the reach of our pigment line in the North American market,” she says, noting that the distributor’s “commitment to quality and innovation mirrors our own, and together we aim to set new benchmarks in the color cosmetics and care industry.”
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