IMCD opens a new Beauty & Personal Care lab in Brea, California
IMCD Group, a global leader in the distribution and formulation of specialty chemicals and ingredients, has strengthened its Beauty & Personal Care capabilities with the opening of a new state-of-the-art laboratory in Brea, California. Located within IMCD’s newly established offices, the facility becomes part of the company’s expanding global network of more than 80 technical and innovation centres worldwide.
The launch of the Brea laboratory marks a significant milestone for IMCD Beauty & Personal Care Americas, reinforcing the company’s commitment to innovation, collaboration, and customer-centric formulation support. The opening event brought together IMCD partners, customers, and employees for an immersive experience, offering guests the opportunity to tour the new laboratory and explore how the space is designed to bring science, creativity, and market insight together.
Strategically positioned on the U.S. West Coast, the new Beauty & Personal Care laboratory has been designed as a collaborative hub for co-creation. The expanded lab space is supported by dedicated meeting areas intended for formulation development, hands-on workshops, and ideation sessions. This integrated setup enables IMCD teams to work closely with customers and principals, accelerating the transformation of concepts into scalable, market-ready solutions.
With beauty and personal care brands facing increasing pressure to innovate faster and respond to evolving consumer preferences, the new facility is expected to play a key role in supporting formulation agility. By enabling real-time testing, refinement, and collaboration, the laboratory allows customers to shorten development timelines while maintaining high standards of performance, sustainability, and regulatory compliance.
Ian Lawrence, Director of IMCD Beauty & Personal Care Americas, highlighted the strategic importance of the new laboratory, noting that it reflects IMCD’s ambition to be a preferred formulation partner for customers across the region. According to Lawrence, the facility represents the company’s focus on innovation, technical excellence, and partnership-driven growth, which together form the foundation of IMCD’s differentiation in the competitive beauty and personal care market. He also emphasized that the investment strengthens IMCD’s footprint on the West Coast and supports long-term collaboration with customers and suppliers alike.
Danielle Wheeler, Technical Director of IMCD Beauty & Personal Care Americas, added that the new laboratory aligns closely with IMCD’s approach to inspiring creativity and curiosity within the beauty ecosystem. She explained that the facility enables teams to co-develop solutions directly with customers, translating consumer insights, market trends, and emerging technologies into actionable formulation concepts. This hands-on collaboration is particularly valuable in a fast-moving beauty landscape where speed to market and differentiation are critical.
The Brea laboratory will support a wide range of beauty and personal care applications, including skin care, hair care, sun care, and color cosmetics. By leveraging IMCD’s extensive portfolio of specialty ingredients and formulation expertise, the facility is positioned to help brands address key industry trends such as clean beauty, sustainability, sensory performance, and multifunctional products.
As IMCD continues to expand its global technical infrastructure, the opening of the Beauty & Personal Care laboratory in Brea underscores the company’s ongoing investment in innovation-led growth. By combining local market expertise with global resources, IMCD aims to empower beauty brands to develop differentiated products that meet both consumer expectations and regulatory demands in an increasingly competitive global market.
About Us
Our story can be traced back to a small group of companies that came together in 1995 with a vision for the industry. Today, guided by the entrepreneurial spirit of our founders, we operate in more than 60 countries across six continents and proudly employ over 5,126 professionals. In 2024, thanks to the passion and ambition of our team, we generated revenues of EUR 4,727 million.
Our aim is to help our suppliers simplify and grow their business operations through our extensive local networks, market intelligence and technical expertise. Our customers benefit from direct access to a large portfolio of high-quality products, avoiding the complexity of dealing with multiple points of contact.
As a responsible distributor of speciality chemicals, our strategy for growth is underpinned by balancing the needs of our people, the environment, and the communities within which we operate.
We are rightfully proud of our team’s diversity, which draws from a range of backgrounds and nationalities, and enables us to benefit from fresh perspectives and ways of problem-solving.
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