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Defining Private Label Services
This is the fastest, most economical way to bring your product line to market. Just select one of our private label products and for small quantities (under 100 each item) you can order online and get the product right away. When you receive your products, you can print and label them yourself. If you’re looking for bulk to fill in your own containers, just order directly from our website.
If you want more than 500 per item, simply send us your labels, and we will apply to the product, apply safety seal and ship to you or your distribution center.
- A deposit of 50% is required to begin order.
Are you looking for something just a little bit different than our stock formula? We will customize our stock formulas in our lab by adding essential oils, changing carrier oils or butters, using different additives, or other similar modifications. We can provide your semi-custom product in bulk, or we can fill (in your containers or ours), label, and ship to you or your distribution center. This typically requires a minimum of 1000 unit per item and a $1000 deposit which is credited toward your first order. We offer 3 submissions before requiring additional deposits.
Need something unique to your business? You can contract with us to create a custom formula from scratch in our lab. We can also ship your product in bulk, or fill, label, and ship to your distribution center. We can provide bulk to you, or fill in your containers or ours with a minimum of 2500 units. This requires a $2500 deposit per item which is credited toward your first order. We offer 3 submissions before requiring additional deposits.
In science, a formula is a concise way of expressing information symbolically, as in a mathematical formula or a chemical formula. The informal use of the term formula in science refers to the general construct of a relationship between given quantities. In other words, it is the percentages of each ingredient, and the method of putting them together.
Note: If you send only the ingredients which are on the label, or just the physical product sample, this is not a formula it is an ingredient list/sample.
Note: When you send us your formula with percentages, as described above, not just the ingredients list, that means that you own that formula.
Note: If we have our in-house Chemist develop (create) the formula from your ingredients list, it is our formula, as we had to reverse engineer the product to get the correct percentages, which takes many hours of our Chemist’s time to determine every ingredient percentage and the method used to put it together.
Should you wish to own that formula, It can be purchased from us.
If you wish to have an Organic Certification notice on your label, it requires a one time fee of $500 per formulation.
If you already have a formula, we can recreate it in our lab and manufacture it for you. We can provide your product in bulk, or we can fill, label, and ship to your distribution center. Or, we can fill your provided formula or bulk in our containers or yours. A deposit of 50% is required to process your order.
Custom Formulations Stage One:
Research and Development – 30 TO 150 DAYS
You might think that a 30 to a 150-day window is a bit ridiculous, but it’s actually quite necessary.
The research and development phase is a time for both art and science and is the foundation for your product’s success. When you hire our lab to create a formula, you are hiring us to research and develop a product that may take several versions to get to exactly what you want. Sometimes we get it right on the very first try. Sometimes products fail on the bench and they never get to you to review.
The chemical composition of natural and organic products will react to one another differently when, for instance, water at 110°F is used as opposed to water at 130°F. You might love the color of manganese or beetroot or hibiscus but find that when they combine with a preservative or a surfactant, the color changes. This is going to happen more frequently when using natural non-synthetic ingredients and as part of our R&D, we must have time to experiment, even with ingredients we frequently use. Stability testing does take 90 days.
Discovery Calls
Before your project ever goes into the lab, you’ll want to have one or more calls with development. R&D can hear your exact thoughts and can ask specific questions, such as which ingredients you are interested in, or parameters you want for the product. They can suggest ingredients you may not have heard of, and they can voice concerns they have with the ingredients you want compared to the effectiveness of the product you desire. It is imperative that you both hear and understand each other completely.
Selecting your Packaging
It may seem like this step is out of place but, you’ll want to know what kind of packaging you’ll be using so you can test the samples in the same type of dispenser. Is the cream too thick for a lotion pump? Is the sprayer for your lotion going to clog up? Will the packaging hold up in the shower? The gym bag? Can you open the diaper balm jar with one hand? All those little things make a difference and your formulators will need to know how the product will be packaged.
Sample Evaluation Process
Lab samples that pass our internal review are sent to you for evaluation. An evaluation form accompanies all samples and each sample is given a unique product identification number so we will always know which formula you’re talking about. You may have New Lotion Formula 001, 002, and 003, with 003 being the formula which you ultimately chose to go into production. So keeping track of your formula numbers is essential.
Approved for Production
Once you’ve finalized your formula choice, you’ll confirm your formula and start planning for production. This formally ends the R&D phase, but there is still science work to be done when your product heads to production and is scaled up for your production run. You’ll pass from the R&D to the Pre-Production phase with your formula, as well as the final list of ingredients for your labels and retail packaging. You’ll have the confidence of market research behind you, too.
Moving into Production
The next section will talk about the phases of production, including stability and challenge testing, quality control and the need for benchmarks to ensure your product is packaged and labeled exactly as you wish. In the third of the series, we’ll talk about distribution and logistics options to successfully bring your product to market.
We hope this helps demystify the process of working with a Private Label Skin Care Florida. If not, please feel free to Email me at: development@privatelabelskincareflorida.com
Creating Custom Personal Care Products – Part 2
Developing Your Bill of Material
A bill of material is a critical document for you and Private Label Skin Care Florida.
As part of your journey to market, we create a BOM, or bill of material, for us to use to create the final, shelf-ready product. BOMs differ from company to company, and from product to product within a company or product line. But they all have the same goal: to act as the final ‘recipe’ for your product. Our BOM should be a comprehensive list of parts, items, assemblies and sub-assemblies that tell everyone how to assemble your final product. Then the BOM, will act as our shopping list for getting all the materials we need; labels, jars, lids, seals, retail boxes, inserts, etc. This is the point where we can finally price your product, when the “Recipe” is complete.
Our BOM details will emerge by reverse-engineering your finished product from shelf back to manufacturer.
• Is there a retail box?
• Is there a box insert?
• How is the label positioned on the bottle?
• Are there packing and shipping restrictions to get your product to the retail outlet or consumer?
By answering these questions, you’ll have the beginnings of your BOM.
How will your product be displayed? This is a critical question concerning brand and selling strategy. Whether your product is competing on a lower shelf at Ulta, near the register of a yoga studio, or as a stand-alone product at a salon, you’ll need to have a vision for how it will grab the attention of your consumer and outshine your competitor. Think beyond just the logo, copy, label design, and bottle. Dig in and see the rest of the details you need to answer to get your product in stores and in your customers’ hands.
Your answers and your vision will determine your recipe. Will you go to market with a retail box? Will you have extras in that box? Or will our product stand on its own?
Is there a retail box around your container?
Will your retail box require an liner or tea insert to hold your bottle in place?
Will you put a direction insert in the box?
Is there a sticker on the outside of box?
We will use a lot code. A lot code is a unique identifier that tells you in which batch, or lot, a product unit was made and also gives an idea of shelf life. This helps with inventory management and with recalls, if required. We lot code every product that goes through our production unit.
This should be an easy aspect to communicate, but there are a lot of variables.
Bottle, jar, tube? Is there a style name, such as a Boston Round or a Double Wall Straight Sided jar or Airless Pump?
Who is the provider and what Stock Keeping Unit – SKU – are you buying?
What size is the container?
Is it plastic, glass, wood, or metal?
What color is it?
What is the neck size? – This is to ensure lids, shrink bands and seals fit properly. You can get this from your packaging supplier.
Is the style of packaging sustainable from the vendor you chose? Do you see back up vendors on the market in case of an out of stock situation? Will shipping time of your packaging affect deadlines in the future? i.e. China to US
Disc cap, treatment pump, spray nozzle, saddle pump, etc.
What is the neck size of your closure and what is the length of any stem that goes into the bottle?
Does the jar need an orifice reducer or plug?
Is there a liner in the lid? If so what color and type?
Let’s say you want a seal in the cap of a lid that doesn’t come with a seal pre-installed. Are you prepared to pay for that labor?
Do you need a seal? If so what kind? Is it in the lid or does it need to be assembled?
If you’re unsure talk with your packaging provider and with your PLSF Rep.
Pressure seal
Induction seal
Heat seal
Is the shrink band just for the cap or is it for the entire bottle?
Does it need to be in a plastic bag, to create a 2nd seal for Amazon purposes?
Silk screened on?
Is there more than one label or sticker?
Where precisely does the label go?
Will your label’s ink withstand a concentrated essential oil or fragrance oil encountering it?
And so it goes. Your BOM may be simple or complicated, but once you have it, you’ve taken a big step in making sure your product meets your vision. When all this is complete there are only a few more things that you need to know.
When you ship your product from the manufacturer to your retail distribution location– either a retail store, distribution center (DC) or fulfillment house, you’ll need to tell the manufacturer how the receiver wants to receive your products. You’ll also want to be sure you think about how the individual units will ship to the end user, if applicable.
Is there a limit on the number of units per box?
Is there weight limit per box?
Can your products be mixed together or is each box a unique set of products?
Can the box contain biodegradable peanuts or is paper dunnage (packing material) required?
Does it need to be a waterproof label?
Are there any special considerations from the receiver?
A case pack is an inner case of several units, and multiple case packs fit in a master case.
How many units to a case pack?
How many case packs to a master pack?
Will each unit go in a bubble wrap envelope?
Does each unit need a sticker or bar code, as you would for Fulfillment by Amazon?
Sizes and weights of each box being shipped
As you begin to document what your product will look like and how it will arrive at its destinations, you’ll quickly see that all the little details add up to a clear bill of material for you and PLSF.
Have your retail box and labels reviewed prior to printing to be sure you are in compliance with your governing agencies, such as the FDA, the European Commission, etc. as well as Private Label Skin Care Florida’s own compliance initiatives.
Once all these questions are answered, and your product packed and ready to go, it leaves production and goes to Shipping and Receiving, along with a “Fill Ticket” which shows our Shipper what is in each box he receives.