KDC/ONE has acquired development and formulation specialist Cosmetic Laboratories of America (CLA), based in Chatsworth, California, thereby boosting its West Coast presence following the purchase of Benchmark Cosmetic Laboratories, Thibiant International and HCT Group. The move is expected to enhance the company's services for emerging and prestige brands in the region by leveraging the proximity of these facilities. Financial terms were not disclosed.
CLA enhances KDC/ONE's skin care, hair care and color cosmetics services for emerging indie brands. It also brings to 18 the number of facilities operated by the organization in North America, Europe and Asia, offering a wide, decentralized manufacturing base.
CLA has about 350 employees and has customers among top health, beauty, cosmetic and fragrance brands, as well as more specialized health and beauty aid companies.
In the past year, the KDC/ONE has nearly doubled in size following the acquisitions of Swallowfield Plc., Zobele Group and Shanghai Paristy Daily Chemical Co., as well as a partnership with Cornell Capital.
"CLA has been a premier early formulation developer for decades, as evidenced by the number of large, flagship beauty products the company has developed and launched over the years,” said Nicholas Whitley, CEO of KDC/ONE. “With an exceptional leadership team, a reputation for speed-to-market and best-in-class assets producing prestige skin and hair care products, CLA is the ideal partner for KDC/ONE as we look to invest in and solidify our West Coast footprint, further enhance our creative, cutting-edge offerings and scale our end-to-end capabilities in the region.”
“We are excited to join the KDC/ONE family and work alongside its world class team to provide our valued customers with an expanded suite of offerings as part of a growing global platform,” said Oscar Saldarriaga, general manager of CLA. “Over the years, CLA has built a platform recognized for innovation, quality and reliability. With KDC/ONE’s unmatched track record of innovation and local and global scale, I am confident that together we will achieve our goal of cementing our position as the custom developer and manufacturer of choice on the West Coast.”
