What is the minimum order quantity for custom serum manufacturing?

Private-label serums start at 500 units per SKU. Custom-formulated serums begin at 2,000 to 3,000 units per SKU to amortize lab development. Larger active dosing or specialty packaging can shift the MOQ.

How long does it take to manufacture a custom serum?

From brief to in-hand inventory is typically 4 to 6 months: 4 to 8 weeks of formulation, 8 to 12 weeks of accelerated stability, then 4 to 6 weeks for production and fill.

Can you stabilize vitamin C and retinol serums?

Yes. We use validated pH windows, chelators, antioxidant systems and airless or amber packaging to ship vitamin C and retinol serums with a 24-month shelf life under real-world conditions.

Manufacturing · Serums

Serum manufacturer for prestige and indie skincare brands.

SkinCore Labs is a full-service serum manufacturer producing water-based, oil-based, biphasic and gel-textured serums for indie founders, prestige beauty brands and government contract programs. We formulate, fill and finish from our cGMP facility in Pompano Beach, Florida.

MOQ

500 units / SKU

Lead time

10–16 weeks

Batch size

25 kg – 5,000 kg

Fill sizes

10 mL – 100 mL

Serum formats we manufacture

Serums are the highest-margin category in skincare and the most sensitive to formulation, packaging and stability. Our R&D team has shipped serums across every major texture profile — from glass-skin essences to rich oil-in-water emulsions.

Water-based clarity serums for vitamin C, niacinamide and hydration
Oil-in-water emulsion serums for retinol, bakuchiol and peptide systems
Biphasic shake-to-mix serums for fresh-dose actives
Gel and gel-cream hybrids for sensitive and acne-prone skin
Encapsulated and time-release serums for advanced delivery

Actives and ingredient systems we work with

Active stability is the difference between a serum that performs and a serum that browns on the shelf. We pair every active with a tested delivery system, pH window and packaging spec.

How a serum project moves through our facility

A typical serum brief lands a first bench sample within 14 to 21 days, with 2 to 3 revision rounds before the formula is locked. Accelerated stability runs 8 to 12 weeks in parallel with packaging compatibility, then we pilot at 25 to 100 kg before scale-up.

Private label and custom paths

Indie founders typically begin with one of our private-label serum bases — vitamin C, hyaluronic, retinol or niacinamide — customized on fragrance, viscosity and primary pack. Brands with a defined positioning move directly to custom formulation with exclusivity windows of 12 to 24 months.

Pack formats

Primary packaging we fill.

Glass dropper bottles 15–60 mL
Airless pumps 30–50 mL
Frosted glass bottles
PCR PET dropper bottles

Actives library

Common actives we work with.

L-Ascorbic Acid
Retinol & retinaldehyde
Niacinamide
Bakuchiol
Peptide complexes
Hyaluronic acid (multi-MW)
Bifida ferment
Azelaic acid

FAQ

Serum manufacturing — frequently asked.

What is the minimum order quantity for custom serum manufacturing?: Private-label serums start at 500 units per SKU. Custom-formulated serums begin at 2,000 to 3,000 units per SKU to amortize lab development. Larger active dosing or specialty packaging can shift the MOQ.
How long does it take to manufacture a custom serum?: From brief to in-hand inventory is typically 4 to 6 months: 4 to 8 weeks of formulation, 8 to 12 weeks of accelerated stability, then 4 to 6 weeks for production and fill.
Can you stabilize vitamin C and retinol serums?: Yes. We use validated pH windows, chelators, antioxidant systems and airless or amber packaging to ship vitamin C and retinol serums with a 24-month shelf life under real-world conditions.

Other categories

More manufacturing capabilities.

Manufacturing · Moisturizers

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