Arcade Beauty: From Samples to Full-Size Products

The most significant milestone for Arcade Beauty over the past two years was the acquisition, in late 2024, of the Yves Rocher Group’s fragrance facility in Ploërmel, Brittany. This acquisition now enables the group to provide a comprehensive service in the fragrance market—from samples to retail products, from formulation to manufacturing and packaging, in France and the U.S.—ranging from fine fragrances to scented merchandise.
Notable among recent product launches is the 50ml Vichy Mineral 89 refill, which required the development of a break-off cap sealed to a flexible pouch, featuring a fine nozzle to facilitate pouring into the original bottle.
In addition, the Group is working to revamp its line of makeup powder samples and will install packaging equipment in July for hot-fill products, such as lipsticks and sticks. Explanations by Carl Allain, President and CEO.

In just a few years, Arcade Beauty has become a global industrial group—a formulator, manufacturer, and packager of fragrance and cosmetic products—with seven production sites in France, Poland, the United States, and Brazil, as well as four sites dedicated to the development and manufacture of packaging (flexible plastic, glass, and cardboard). Last year, the Group generated revenue of $300 million and employs approximately 1,500 people worldwide. “We are undeniably the global leader in the market for samples and mini products,” emphasizes Carl Allain.
“Our ambition is to go even further and apply our expertise to the manufacture of full-size products, with the same commitment to service, quality, and responsiveness—which is truly the DNA of the Arcade Beauty Group. From now on, cosmetics and fragrance brands can rely on a single trusted partner throughout the consumer journey, from discovering their first sample to the final purchase.”

A Comprehensive Manufacturing Infrastructure

State-of-the-art facilities in Dayton, New Jersey, and Ploërmel, France, offer comprehensive solutions for the fragrance industry. They enable the automated blending of small and large quantities of scented alcohol-based solutions, including formulation, maceration, cooling, and filtration.
In the personal care sector, the plant in Diadema, Brazil, specializes in the formulation and manufacture of hair care, sun care, baby care, and skin care products.
Our plants in Val-de-Reuil (Biopack), Thouars (Socoplan), Warsaw (Socopol), and South Plainfield (New Jersey, U.S.), which specialize in packaging small- and large-format products, round out this global manufacturing network. “Our filling equipment is suitable for a wide variety of bulk products,” explains Carl Allain, “ranging from alcoholic solutions to powders and hot-filled products, as well as oils, liquids, and creams. “Our packaging solutions cover a wide range of sizes, from 0.1 ml to 1 liter. They include single-dose samples (blister packs and sachets), mini-products (ampoules, mascara tubes, vials, tubes, and jars), and standard-size packaging (refills and perfume bottles).”
In addition, we manufacture primary and secondary packaging through four plants located in Airvault (Socoprint, flexible packaging, high-end digital printing, rotogravure, and lamination services), in Mouans-Sartoux (Carestia, blotters and printed, gold-foiled, and embossed cardboard with a very high level of quality), Phoenix (tubular drawn glass bottles of various sizes, New Jersey, US), and Dixon (manufacturing of the ScentStrip, Illinois, US). “We are proud,” says Carl Allain, “of our vertically integrated packaging solutions. Our in-house capabilities include the manufacture of glass bottles, plastic laminates, and printed cardboard, which allows us to help brands optimize their manufacturing processes and reduce time-to-market.”

The Yves Rocher plant in Ploërmel: a turning point

The Rocher Group, a French cosmetics and fragrance company that markets brands such as Yves Rocher, Dr. Pierre Ricaud, Stanhome, Arbonne, and Sabon, has sold its Ploërmel plant in France to Arcade Beauty. Since 1982, this site has specialized in manufacturing fragrance products for the group’s brands. The final agreement, which includes Arcade Beauty retaining the entire workforce, was formalized on October 1, 2024. The Rocher Group’s fragrances will continue to be produced at the site for at least five years. Arcade Beauty will add ten million additional units to production there and plans to continue expanding the business in the coming years. Arcade Beauty also plans to make new investments to modernize the industrial facilities in Ploërmel. “This year,” says Carl Allain, President and CEO, “the Group is investing in new automated production lines for miniature perfumes and body/hair mists, which are fast-growing markets.”

Environment and the Energy Crisis: What Are the Challenges?

“We launched our CSR initiative very early on, back in 2018,” emphasizes Carl Allain, “specifically by calculating the carbon footprint for all our industrial operations across our three regions: Europe, the U.S., and Brazil. This enabled us to define a carbon reduction trajectory validated by the SBTi (Science-Based Targets Initiative).”
“As a packaging manufacturer, we have also worked extensively on the design of our products to make packaging recyclable while incorporating a significant proportion of recycled materials. We are now in compliance with the new PPWR regulations and continue to support our customers in their sustainability efforts. Furthermore, since we operate a production facility for flexible packaging, we are able to meet market demand with the support of our raw material suppliers. This gives us a competitive advantage and allows us to manage the entire supply chain. Regarding the rigid plastics that we purchase without processing them, we have a fairly extensive network of suppliers to guarantee our customers optimal service, with the goal of always having at least two sources of supply”
As for the combined effect of rising tariffs and the energy crisis triggered by the war in Iran, it is clearly having an impact on the Group’s order intake. “Our customers have become more cautious,” explains Carl Allain, “and have decided to postpone certain product launches and reduce their marketing budgets, partly to cope with a slowdown in consumer spending and rising inflation on raw materials and transportation costs.”

KEY DATES

1902: The Chattanooga Arcade printing plant opened its doors.

1970: Socoplan, a cosmetics packaging company, was founded in St. Jean-de-Thouars, France.

1979: ScentStrip® was invented.

1980: A comprehensive portfolio of sampling technologies was developed: ScentSeal®, BeautiSeal®, DiscCover®, LiquaTouch®

1985: Launch in France of the 1st cosmetic sample packet insertable into magazine publications.

1995: Automation of the 1st production line for inserting perfume vials into sample cards.

2006: Acquisition of Dixon Web Printing and the fragrance division of Vertis.

2007: International expansion with the creation of subsidiaries in Poland (Socopol) and China (Flexasia).

2008: Acquisition of Biopack (France), a company specializing in the production of perfume bottles, roll-ons, and spray pens.

2011: Acquisition of Mappel, a bulk manufacturing company in Brazil.
BeautiPod® is launched.

2012: Acquisition of Le Papillon in New Jersey (US), a major supplier of perfume samples and turnkey solutions, and of Phoenix Glass.

2013: Acquisition of Carestia, the world leader in blotters and scented paper.

2013: Creation of Bioplan Beauty and acquisition of Aphena Health and Beauty.

2014: Merger of Arcade Marketing and Bioplan Beauty to create a new company: Arcade Beauty.

2015: Investment in a state-of-the-art digital printing machine at the Socoprint site in Airvault (France).

2015: Signing of a partnership agreement for the exclusive production and distribution of EasySnap®

2015: Carestia moved to a new facility in Mouans-Sarthoux.

2017: Expansion and creation at Biopack of a workshop dedicated to packaging mini products

2017: Relocation of ScentSeal®, BeautiSeal®, LiquaTouch®, and BeautiPod® production to Socoplan in France

2018: Expansion of fragrance sampling and production capabilities in the United States through the acquisition of Suite K’s operational assets: a new plant in Dayton, New Jersey.

2019: Arcade Beauty invests in digital channels and capabilities and launches its digital business, abeo.

2021: Launch of Arcade Beauty’s retail operations and establishment of three strategic pillars: sampling, retail, and digital.

2021: Construction of a new storage facility for fragrances and packaging materials at Socoplan

2023: Arcade Beauty acquires TruEssence® from ORLANDI

2024: Arcade Beauty announces a strategic manufacturing partnership with Intercos China and withdraws from its operations in Suzhou.

2024: Acquisition of the Rocher Group’s fragrance facility in Ploërmel, Brittany