Tom Branna, Editorial Director04.03.23
The business of beauty is bruising. Competition is fierce, consumers are fickle and the economy can be questionable. Despite long odds, entrepreneurs flock to the space with visions of Indie beauty stardom in their heads; unfortunately, those visions can lead to plenty of headaches, too.
Helping cure those headaches is Prime Matter Labs (PML), a contract manufacturer with offices in Miami, Los Angeles and New York City. PML manufactures a wide range of skin, sun, hair and body care products. The company is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and company executives insist the goal remains the same—building better products for its customers.
“Consumers are driving changes in the marketplace, and technology makes it happen,” notes CEO Aaron Paas. “Small companies can come to market and with online options, startups have a whole new shelf for their products.”
Paas has a deep knowledge of the industry, having worked for Procter & Gamble in Canada, where he fell in love with new product development and marketing. Later, he moved to Boston to work on Gillette, which was reinventing the men’s personal grooming category. As general manager, Paas was intimately involved with the design, development and launch of several blockbusters, culminating in the introduction of the Mach3 shaving system.
As GM, Paas worked on projects from concept to shelf, and he saw how one startup was shaking up the shaving category.
“The whole shaving industry was getting blown up by Dollar Shave Club,” recalled Paas. “Technology drove the change and proved that small companies could come to market and be successful. The market shifted from on-shelf to online and that’s been my focus for the past 15 years.”
That focus includes a stint at Etsy.com, before creating his own personal care brand Wildist, which he led until joining Prime Matter Labs in 2021.
Together, they created high standards for product development and production capabilities, formulation expertise, quality and regulatory control, and personalized project management.
On Jan. 1, 2020, private equity firm Monogram Capital Partners acquired Prime Matter Labs, with the intention of building on the Barakat family’s success. In October 2021, Prime Matter Labs acquired Torrance, CA-based Cosmetic Development Laboratories and renamed it Prime Matter Labs West. The expansion increased geographic coverage, production capacity and operations, while setting the stage for greater use of innovative technologies. The move doubled PML’s manufacturing footprint.
After 40 years as founders and operators of Prime, Mohamed and Mark Barakat, and Linares officially moved out of their day-to-day leadership and into board of director and advisory roles in August 2022. They all remain very active board members helping steer the future of PML through their guidance and support of Paas and his leadership team.
In addition to his board role, Linares also holds the title of “CSO Emeritus” in which he provides regular support and guidance to the new Chief Scientific Officer Jen Hurtikant and her entire R&D team in their work to build on Linares’ legacy of industry-leading formulation, innovation and customer growth.
In December, 2021, Paas was named CEO.
“I know where the market is going,” asserted Paas. “We’re building the contract manufacturer of the future.”
That means meeting the needs of customers from ideation to scale. Paas noted that many entrepreneurs face large minimums that make it impossible to break into a market.
“We can take entrepreneurs from production of 5,000 units to 1 million units,” asserted Paas. “We scale with them.”
And with low barriers to entry, the company is a favorite for innovative startups.
In the past year, PML has enjoyed a surge in skin care demand due, in part, to its long history in sun care.
“We have a deep bench on SPF technology,” said Paas.
That melding of sun care and skin care attributes dovetails with PML’s level of expertise.
As demand for body care products grows, PML can fill bottles, tubes, jars and much more. As a result, a brand can easily expand its offerings with minimum effort.
“We are agile on fill type,” explained Paas. “We have the equipment to take a formulation and expand it across many applications.”
In hair care, Paas noted a growing demand for unique, niche formulations. He pointed out ethnic and other specialized brands are building successful businesses in the hair care space.
“We can help companies find and fill their niche,” he asserted.
PML’s capabilities include custom development, reverse engineering, scale-up of existing formulas and stability improvement.
“We see a lot of demand for this format. BOV gives you the same benefits of aerosol without the propellants,” said Paas. “The technology lets you disperse anything—it is formula agnostic.”
Overall, with the West Coast expansion, PML doubled its number of employees. Now, the company boasts more than 300,000 square feet of production, warehouse and office space.
“We don’t pass along every price increase,” asserted Paas. “We’re not toll manufacturers, we’re partners with our customers.”
Pricing transparency and production transparency, too. PML has the tools in place to enable brands to log-in and see exactly where their projects are located in the pipeline.
“There are a lot of moving pieces in the contract manufacturing process,” he noted. “We deliver production peace of mind.”
Paas predicts that the next 10-20 years is going to be “super interesting” in the FMCG space.
“I know P&G isn’t going anywhere; it will always control 50% of the market—it’s the other 50% of the business that I love.”
Paas said there are 2,500 brands competing in multibillion-dollar categories. PML is building a company that will help its customers successfully compete in a challenging landscape.
“Our brands and customers are so diverse,” he told Happi. “We are fairly resilient to weather the ups and downs. We can serve customers who want economical formulas as well customers who want super-premium formulas. We have a diverse customer base and we can deliver results for all of them.”
Helping cure those headaches is Prime Matter Labs (PML), a contract manufacturer with offices in Miami, Los Angeles and New York City. PML manufactures a wide range of skin, sun, hair and body care products. The company is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, and company executives insist the goal remains the same—building better products for its customers.
“Consumers are driving changes in the marketplace, and technology makes it happen,” notes CEO Aaron Paas. “Small companies can come to market and with online options, startups have a whole new shelf for their products.”
Paas has a deep knowledge of the industry, having worked for Procter & Gamble in Canada, where he fell in love with new product development and marketing. Later, he moved to Boston to work on Gillette, which was reinventing the men’s personal grooming category. As general manager, Paas was intimately involved with the design, development and launch of several blockbusters, culminating in the introduction of the Mach3 shaving system.
As GM, Paas worked on projects from concept to shelf, and he saw how one startup was shaking up the shaving category.
“The whole shaving industry was getting blown up by Dollar Shave Club,” recalled Paas. “Technology drove the change and proved that small companies could come to market and be successful. The market shifted from on-shelf to online and that’s been my focus for the past 15 years.”
That focus includes a stint at Etsy.com, before creating his own personal care brand Wildist, which he led until joining Prime Matter Labs in 2021.
A Legacy of Quality
Meanwhile, Prime Matter Labs was undergoing changes of its own. The company was founded in 1983 by the Barakat family—BM Barakat and his sons, Mark and Mohamed, and Frank Linares.Together, they created high standards for product development and production capabilities, formulation expertise, quality and regulatory control, and personalized project management.
On Jan. 1, 2020, private equity firm Monogram Capital Partners acquired Prime Matter Labs, with the intention of building on the Barakat family’s success. In October 2021, Prime Matter Labs acquired Torrance, CA-based Cosmetic Development Laboratories and renamed it Prime Matter Labs West. The expansion increased geographic coverage, production capacity and operations, while setting the stage for greater use of innovative technologies. The move doubled PML’s manufacturing footprint.
After 40 years as founders and operators of Prime, Mohamed and Mark Barakat, and Linares officially moved out of their day-to-day leadership and into board of director and advisory roles in August 2022. They all remain very active board members helping steer the future of PML through their guidance and support of Paas and his leadership team.
In addition to his board role, Linares also holds the title of “CSO Emeritus” in which he provides regular support and guidance to the new Chief Scientific Officer Jen Hurtikant and her entire R&D team in their work to build on Linares’ legacy of industry-leading formulation, innovation and customer growth.
In December, 2021, Paas was named CEO.
“I know where the market is going,” asserted Paas. “We’re building the contract manufacturer of the future.”
That means meeting the needs of customers from ideation to scale. Paas noted that many entrepreneurs face large minimums that make it impossible to break into a market.
“We can take entrepreneurs from production of 5,000 units to 1 million units,” asserted Paas. “We scale with them.”
And with low barriers to entry, the company is a favorite for innovative startups.
The Ideal Partner
The PML staff loves working with customers ranging in size from emerging indies to personal care companies with sales of $100 to 200 million, according to Paas. The ideal customer has a unique idea that will fill a niche in the market. The most successful brand owners, explained Paas, are those that have done their homework and have insights on consumer needs.In the past year, PML has enjoyed a surge in skin care demand due, in part, to its long history in sun care.
“We have a deep bench on SPF technology,” said Paas.
That melding of sun care and skin care attributes dovetails with PML’s level of expertise.
As demand for body care products grows, PML can fill bottles, tubes, jars and much more. As a result, a brand can easily expand its offerings with minimum effort.
“We are agile on fill type,” explained Paas. “We have the equipment to take a formulation and expand it across many applications.”
In hair care, Paas noted a growing demand for unique, niche formulations. He pointed out ethnic and other specialized brands are building successful businesses in the hair care space.
“We can help companies find and fill their niche,” he asserted.
PML’s capabilities include custom development, reverse engineering, scale-up of existing formulas and stability improvement.
A Range of Capabilities
With facilities in California, Florida and New York, PML can attract great talent and invite brands in for a convenient visit. Production sites in Torrance and Miami both feature high-speed filling equipment. Areas of expertise include liquids, pastes, creams, hot-fills, ointments, and alcohol-based formulas. Most recently, the company is adding bag-on-valve (BOV) filling equipment.“We see a lot of demand for this format. BOV gives you the same benefits of aerosol without the propellants,” said Paas. “The technology lets you disperse anything—it is formula agnostic.”
Overall, with the West Coast expansion, PML doubled its number of employees. Now, the company boasts more than 300,000 square feet of production, warehouse and office space.
A New Normal
Prime Matter Labs thrived during the pandemic. Company founders pivoted quickly to fill soaring demand for hand sanitizers. Paas recalled it was encouraging to see how agile and resilient the business remained during the pandemic. PML successfully navigated unprecedented fluctuations in material cost and availability, and production time lines. Now, volatility has ebbed, but challenges remain with high inflation rates.“We don’t pass along every price increase,” asserted Paas. “We’re not toll manufacturers, we’re partners with our customers.”
Pricing transparency and production transparency, too. PML has the tools in place to enable brands to log-in and see exactly where their projects are located in the pipeline.
“There are a lot of moving pieces in the contract manufacturing process,” he noted. “We deliver production peace of mind.”
The Next 40 Years
Production capability is soaring, but Paas expects the majority of growth to come from its core business—skin care, hair care, body care and sun care. As a result, Paas said Prime Matter Labs will post double-digit gains no matter what happens in the US and global economies.Paas predicts that the next 10-20 years is going to be “super interesting” in the FMCG space.
“I know P&G isn’t going anywhere; it will always control 50% of the market—it’s the other 50% of the business that I love.”
Paas said there are 2,500 brands competing in multibillion-dollar categories. PML is building a company that will help its customers successfully compete in a challenging landscape.
“Our brands and customers are so diverse,” he told Happi. “We are fairly resilient to weather the ups and downs. We can serve customers who want economical formulas as well customers who want super-premium formulas. We have a diverse customer base and we can deliver results for all of them.”
To mark the 40th anniversary of Prime Matter Labs, there were multiple celebrations for the milestone across the company’s offices. These images are from the celebration that took place in Miami in February 2023. |