Dermocosmetics manufacturer and laboratory: your pharmacy's own brand, from tolerance testing to regulatory documentation

A dermocosmetics laboratory develops, tests and manufactures skincare for sensitive or reactive skin, with rigorous tolerance and evidence standards close to those expected in pharmacies. Carmel Cosmetics Labs is a dermocosmetics laboratory and factory certified to ISO 22716 and ISO 9001 by Bureau Veritas, based in Aït Melloul, Greater Agadir, Morocco.

A point often missing from product descriptions: dermocosmetics is not a regulatory category. Skincare sold in a pharmacy is still a cosmetic product, subject to the same rules as other cosmetics. The difference lies in formulation rigor, the tests selected for the product and the strength of the documentation supporting every label claim.

Carmel Cosmetics Labs works with three types of business:

• Dermocosmetics brands looking for a dermocosmetics laboratory that can take a range from formula to finished product;
• Pharmacies looking for their own brand to recommend at the counter;
• Drugstores and buying groups looking for an exclusive range beyond the brands everyone stocks.

An own brand turns your advice into a product bearing your name: you set the price, retain the margin and bring customers back to you, rather than a competitor selling the same brand.

At the pharmacy counter, advice drives sales. When you recommend a major brand, that advice benefits the brand, and your customer can buy the same tube elsewhere, sometimes for less. With your pharmacy's own brand, the recommendation, product and loyalty stay with your pharmacy.

The brands you stock still have a place on your shelves. Your own brand sits alongside them, addressing the needs you advise on daily: sensitive skin, dryness, blemishes and sun protection.

Carmel Cosmetics Labs starts with your target customer (skin type, needs and pharmacy positioning), then proposes either a proven base to adapt or custom formulation.

• More than 1,000 existing formulas as a starting point, including clean sulfate-free and silicone-free formulas;
• Active ingredients selected for tolerance and cosmetic benefits, with an INCI list your customers and counter staff can understand;
• Textures and fragrances tailored to your pharmacy's customers (fragrance-free, subtle fragrance or signature scent);
• Free samples so you can evaluate the products before approval;
• You own the formula : it is developed for your brand, not licensed to you.

To explore the available bases, browse our white label facial serums and our dermocosmetic face creams.

You can claim what testing on your product demonstrates, and nothing more. Carmel Cosmetics Labs offers optional dermatological and tolerance testing through a partner laboratory in Europe accredited to ISO/IEC 17025, providing an independent assessment of your products. For each product, we agree on tests that support the claims you want on the label, then word those claims so they stay within what the results demonstrate.

The rule: the 6 common criteria in Regulation (EU) No. 655/2013

In Europe, every cosmetic claim must meet six common criteria:

1. Legal compliance a legal requirement that applies to all products cannot be presented as an advantage (for example, an "authorized" product);
2. Truthfulness the product does what its claims say;
3. Evidential support each claim is backed by appropriate evidence (tests, studies or ingredient data);
4. Honesty no exaggerated effects or promises beyond the evidence;
5. Fairness no denigration of competitors or permitted ingredients;
6. Informed decision-making the message is clear to the average consumer.

Examples: acceptable and unacceptable claims

The boundary you must never cross: therapeutic claims. Cosmetics are not medicines and cannot make therapeutic claims. A medical promise takes a product outside the cosmetics framework, in Europe as in Morocco. This is the first thing we check on your labels, even for products sold in pharmacies.

Before approving a label, we explain which claims your product's testing supports and which need to be removed.

Carmel Cosmetics Labs prepares each product's regulatory documentation: the PIF and CPNP notification for Europe (your brand or its appointed representative remains the Responsible Person), the AMMPS declaration for Morocco, and FDA (MoCRA) registration if you target the United States. You receive a product ready for sale, not just a filled bottle.

1. Formula and INCI list composition compliant with Regulation (EC) No. 1223/2009 (permitted ingredients, restrictions and concentrations);
2. Safety assessment and PIF the Product Information File brings together the product description, safety report signed by an independent external assessor, manufacturing method (GMP, ISO 22716), evidence for claimed effects and test results;
3. EU Responsible Person required to place a product on the European market; this role belongs to your brand (or its appointed representative), not Carmel;
4. CPNP notification product notification on the European portal before it is placed on the market;
5. Labeling mandatory information and claims reviewed against Regulation (EU) No. 655/2013;
6. Morocco declaration to AMMPS; Carmel itself is registered with ONSSA and AMMPS. Our guide explains the procedure forAMMPS registration in Morocco ;
7. United States Carmel is registered with the FDA under MoCRA.

For a French pharmacy or a Moroccan drugstore, the outcome is the same: complete documentation, ready to present during an inspection.

An effective pharmacy range covers the needs you advise on every day: cleansing, addressing a specific cosmetic need, moisturizing and protecting. Carmel Cosmetics Labs manufactures all these categories with a consistent visual identity across the products.

• Face care : cleansers, serums and creams for sensitive, dry or blemish-prone skin;
• Sun care : sun protection for face and body, with a protection factor supported by testing;
• Intimate hygiene : intimate care products with gentle formulas and particularly careful claims wording;
• Baby and maternity care : baby and maternity skincare, the category with the most demanding tolerance requirements;
• Body care : lotions, balms and oils for dry skin.

You can start with three or four core products and expand later: you own the brand, and the range grows with your pharmacy.

If you are a pharmacy or brand based in Morocco, yes: dermocosmetics remains a growing pharmacy market, even though growth is slowing. Rather than repeat figures here, we have compiled aggregated data in a dedicated article on Morocco's dermocosmetics market figures.

For European brands, the advantage is twofold: a dermocosmetics laboratory in Morocco working to European standards, and direct access to the Moroccan market through the AMMPS declaration.

The project follows six steps, from free consultation to finished product, with one point of contact.

1. Free consultation your customers, the needs to cover and your pharmacy price positioning;
2. Formula proposal existing bases to adapt or custom formulation;
3. Free samples you and your team evaluate textures, fragrances and finish;
4. Testing (optional) and claims dermatological and tolerance tests selected according to your intended claims;
5. Regulatory documentation PIF, CPNP notification and AMMPS according to your markets (your brand remains the EU Responsible Person);
6. Manufacturing and packing at our Aït Melloul factory, with an accessible MOQ.

Factory visits are available by appointment: the best way to see how your range will be produced.