Debut is democratizing access to the biotech revolution with the launch of BiotechXBeautyLabs, a contract manufacturing and formulation development platform that provided brands of various sizes with access to high-performance, sustainable biotech ingredients incorporated into custom formulations and white label products.
BiotechXBeautyLabs is Opening Access to Biotech
Debut made its name creating leading-edge technologies for giants such as L'Oreal; BiotechXBeautyLabs expands that mission significantly by opening access to a wide array of brands.
The new business reportedly provides global brands with speed-to-market without upfront research costs associated with clinically tested ingredient technologies.
"BiotechXBeautyLabs is a biotech formulation development and contract manufacturing business that offers the ultimate competitive advantage to beauty brands: product innovation driven by biotechnology," says Debut founder and CEO Joshua Britton, Ph.D. "With Debut as its parent company, BiotechXBeautyLabs enables brands, large and small, to gain access to novel, science-backed, peak-performing formulations that are 95% bio-based."
Britton adds, "The new division also gives brands access to novel and, in many cases, groundbreaking marketing claims that draw upon Debut’s R&D innovation. No other beauty contract manufacturer offers access to biotech without the heavy R&D investment that would otherwise command up to tens of millions of dollars."
On the cost front, Britton adds, "Our pricing is highly competitive given that we are disrupting the beauty contract manufacturing landscape with novel, high-performing ingredients and formulations that, in many cases, brands will be the first to bring to market."
He concludes, "Our goal is for biotech formulations to be at a lower cost than petroleum or cultivated formulations due to their peak performance, meaning you need lower concentrations in a formulation (than what is typically on the market)."
BiotechXBeautyLabs: Rapid Product Development, Proprietary Claims
BiotechXBeautyLabs can help brands develop biotech-powered beauty products in as little as three months by tapping into white label products, per Joshua Britton, CEO and founder of Debut (pictured). For customized formulations, that process is still as little as seven months.Joshua Britton, Image Credit: Billy Economou, BE Studios
For customized formulations, that process is still as little as seven months.
To make these timelines possible, BiotechXBeautyLabs combines novel ingredient discovery, pre-clinical testing, formulation development, quality control production and a portfolio of 250 ingredient technologies reportedly consisting of more than 7,000 proprietary claims.
Each of those 250 ingredients "have been tested and validated with both pre-clinical and clinical testing," per Britton.
The result of these combined capabilities, according to the company, is a process that consistently and safely produces high-performance, efficacious products with standout claims. This focus on efficacy and claims is particularly crucial amid an uptick in consumer focus on expert-/clinically backed beauty.
"Debut is the only biotech beauty company with fully vertical integration capabilities, from ingredient discovery to finished products on the shelf," says Britton. "We have spent the past five years developing advanced science to meet demand. Any company starting right now would take 7-10 years to come close to our level of capabilities."
Tackling Emerging Claims
"Performance is at the core of what we do," says Britton. "Since Debut was founded five years ago, we have obtained more than 70 patents on formulations and ingredients, and we are trusted by the biggest beauty companies in the world, including L’Oréal."
He adds, "Our ingredient portfolio addresses many emerging consumer needs. For example, our novel polyphenol ingredients offer dramatically enhanced barrier protection and anti-aging benefits compared to current active ingredients on the market. This is a huge area for us as we have several superhero bioactive ingredients that powerfully rebuild the skin barrier and limit inflammaging. Importantly, these ingredients can only be made through biotechnology, not chemistry or cultivation."
BiotechXBeautyLabs: Skin Care & Beyond
"We specialize in topical skin formulations and have actives and products for hair and body as well," says Britton. "In addition to inflammaging, our ingredients coming to market address epidermal barrier repair for post-procedure care, skin brightening, anti-aging and scalp care."
In fact, according to an official announcement, BiotechXBeautyLabs is "already collaborating with brands in hair, scalp, body care and nutrition."
A Secure, Sustainable Supply Chain
BiotechXBeautyLabs' use of biotech ingredients is intended to overcome rising regulatory challenges faced by many conventional technologies, including retinol.
It also provides a secure supply chain that minimizes environmental impacts such as carbon emissions, energy consumption, and land and water use.
"Sustainability is a non-negotiable and an integral part of our offering. Our ingredients and formulations are 95% bio-based," says Britton. "Brands that partner with BiotechXBeautyLabs achieve superior ethical standards because our ingredients are not cultivated or derived from petroleum. There is no need for pesticides or toxic solvents in advanced biomanufacturing processes."
He adds, "Our entire manufacturing is conducted in a tightly controlled facility where safety, purity, consistency and quality are hard-wired in all that we do. It’s a similar process to brewing beer, but instead we engineer microbes to do exactly what a plant does to create highly specific, high value, high-performance ingredients, while minimizing environmental impact (including land, water and carbon dioxide)."
