Operations Plan
Company Locations and Facilities
Pachama's permanent offices and research facility will be located in a shared office suite at 175 Varick St., New York, NY. This is an economical location, ideal for a small startup company because we will be in the heart of the fashion and financial capital of the world. This space should be sufficient for our planned staff size within the first few years including, executives, sales and marketing staff.
Manufacturing and distribution in the first five years will be contracted out to Cosmetic Laboratories an industrial cosmetics laboratory and production facility located in Irving, Texas. This facility will provide Pachama with turn-key service, including: Custom product duplication, packaging and shipping. Our research has confirmed that our contract manufacturers can source all necessary raw materials for us and will use any resources that we wish to provide.
Development Process
Product development will begin with when we provide Cosmetic Laboratories with written product descriptions specifying what ingredients and atributes we desire, including raw base sources. We aim to make our color palette match the same quality and intensity of MAC Cosmetics without directly copying their formulation or exact palette. During the development phase we will work closely with the chemist to find the best combination of natural pigmentations that will achieve the correct hue, vibrancy, and saturation values.
Cosmetic Laboratories’ staff chemist will mix and conduct tests of formulations until they reach the highest level of chemical stability and consistency for packaging. Small batch samples will be sent to Pachama for further quality tests of color, texture, and asthetics. Our tests will be conducted on site at Pachama’s offices. The two testing methods we will use are 1) focus groups and 2) paid test subjects. These methods provide us with detailed feedback for each product. We will then send information back to Cosmetic Laboratories who will further refine our product.
Three step process performed by Cosmetic Laboratories.
- Formulation and Ingredient: Chemists will create formulas and produce prototype samples.
- Testing: Measurements of pH and viscosity will be made, product function and stability will be determined.
- Formula revision: Once ingredients are decided upon, improvements will be made to the formula before a final product is set.
Research and development will be completed in the first year of business and products will be deployed at the beginning of year two. Once our products formulas reach a point where we are satisfied and confident of quality, a production run will be ordered through our cosmetics manufacturer.
Packaging
Artwork and design for the packaging will be developed with assistance of our marketing and sales team and freelance graphic designers will be used to create all artwork. Paper and glass containers will be sourced from recycled materials suppliers.
FDA guidelines concerning the sale, labeling and production of cosmetics.[1]
Labeling: The FDA requires that all cosmetic be labeled correctly and must have followed labeling regulations. Labeling means all labels and other written, printed or graphic matter on or accompanying a product. The label statements required under the authority of the FD&C Act must appear on the inside as well as any outside container or wrapper.
Declaration of Ingredients: Cosmetics produced or distributed for retail sale to consumers for their personal care are required to bear an ingredient declaration
Label Warnings: Cosmetics which may be hazardous to consumers when misused must bear appropriate label warnings and adequate directions for safe use.
Suppliers
Pachama Cosmetics will use three main suppliers of cosmetics bases for our raw ingredients.
- Essential Wholesale, based in Portland, Oregon supplies natural and organic and naturally derived ingredients. Essential Wholesale & Labs is an FDA Registered and a USDA Organic Certified company.
- New Directions Aromatics Inc. is an Australian company with a U.S. office located in Cheektowaga, NY. They supply natural cosmetics products to manufacturers.
- Astaberry is a leading manufacturer and exporter of natural, herbal and organic cosmetics supplies in India and is a source for many Asian botanicals.
Information Technology
Pachama’s website will be its primary means for customer transaction. Our information technology solution will be outsourced to GoECart based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. This company will provide multi-channel order management, inventory management, order fulfillment, and integrated customer relation management. GoECart will fill online orders and ship product to any point in the world.
Import/Export Considerations
The FDA does not require an export certificate for cosmetics but the agency does provide resource permits. Individual countries may have their own regulations that apply to the import of cosmetics. Pachama will retain the services of the following agents to help facilitate our import/export operations:
- Customs Brokers: To help clear our goods through the customs department at the port of import or port of export.
- Freight Forwarders: Shipping agents for international locations will provide the necessary delivery services of our goods.