A founder-ready blueprint for topical cosmetics—built from more than two decades inside formulation, scale-up, and launch realities.
The gap between an idea and a formula that can actually be manufactured
The gap between a claim and the proof required to say it safely
The gap between “prototype approved” and “commercial batch matches”
This template closes those gaps before they become reformulations, relabeling, delays, and credibility loss.
This is the document I wish every founder had before they paid a lab, hired a designer, or started promising outcomes.
It’s not “more paperwork.” It’s definition, and definition is what turns a vision into something reproducible.
1) Product identity + market reality
Consumer, positioning, channel, price + margin targets—so decisions match the buyer and the business.
2) Claims direction + guardrails
What you can say, what you should never say, and how to map claims to an evidence pathway—without killing your brand voice.
3) Sensory + performance targets
Because in topicals, the experience is the product: texture, finish, absorption, and compatibility with the rest of the routine.
4) Packaging requirements that protect the formula
So your product doesn’t degrade in the exact container you fell in love with.
5) Cost + timeline gates
Clear targets, clear owners, clear decision points—so you stop restarting.
Founders building their first topical product and wanting to avoid expensive wrong turns
Small R&D teams who need a repeatable, professional intake system
Consultants and manufacturers who want cleaner inputs and fewer late-stage surprises
This isn’t theory. It’s pattern recognition.
Built from decades of seeing where products stall, where claims break, where packaging betrays the formula, and where handoffs create silent failures.
Includes:
Editable Product Development Brief Template + guidance notes so you know what “good” looks like as you fill it out.
A founder-ready blueprint for topical cosmetics—built from more than two decades inside formulation, scale-up, and launch realities.
The gap between an idea and a formula that can actually be manufactured
The gap between a claim and the proof required to say it safely
The gap between “prototype approved” and “commercial batch matches”
This template closes those gaps before they become reformulations, relabeling, delays, and credibility loss.
This is the document I wish every founder had before they paid a lab, hired a designer, or started promising outcomes.
It’s not “more paperwork.” It’s definition, and definition is what turns a vision into something reproducible.
1) Product identity + market reality
Consumer, positioning, channel, price + margin targets—so decisions match the buyer and the business.
2) Claims direction + guardrails
What you can say, what you should never say, and how to map claims to an evidence pathway—without killing your brand voice.
3) Sensory + performance targets
Because in topicals, the experience is the product: texture, finish, absorption, and compatibility with the rest of the routine.
4) Packaging requirements that protect the formula
So your product doesn’t degrade in the exact container you fell in love with.
5) Cost + timeline gates
Clear targets, clear owners, clear decision points—so you stop restarting.
Founders building their first topical product and wanting to avoid expensive wrong turns
Small R&D teams who need a repeatable, professional intake system
Consultants and manufacturers who want cleaner inputs and fewer late-stage surprises
This isn’t theory. It’s pattern recognition.
Built from decades of seeing where products stall, where claims break, where packaging betrays the formula, and where handoffs create silent failures.
Includes:
Editable Product Development Brief Template + guidance notes so you know what “good” looks like as you fill it out.
