What Vanguard Soap LLC does

Vanguard Soap LLC is a privately held, family-owned contract manufacturer of bar soaps, liquid soaps, body washes, and soap bases, headquartered at 3084 South Center Rd, Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1943 by Charlie Breazeale as a washing-powder producer using soybean and cottonseed oils, the business has operated continuously across three generations of the Breazeale family (now chaired by Jeff Breazeale) and today employs 101–250 people at a single, vertically integrated Memphis facility that draws process water from the Memphis Aquifer and refines it through deionization and UV treatment.

The company's operations span the full soap production stack: saponification via the traditional kettle process for in-house bases (marketed under the proprietary ValPure line including tallow/coco, vegetable, and NOP-certified organic variants), high-speed bar extrusion and finishing lines with annual capacity exceeding 350 million bars across formats from under 0.5 oz to over 12 oz, multiple liquid soap filling lines supporting varied viscosities and packaging, and specialty hot pour capabilities for solid shampoo bars, deodorants, and whipped scrubs. A full-cycle QA system covers incoming raw material quarantine, in-process controls, lab validation, microbiological testing, and laser batch coding for traceability.

Vanguard monetizes exclusively through B2B contract and private label manufacturing agreements. Pricing is quote-based and tied to formulation complexity, ingredient selection, order volume, packaging, and certification requirements; the firm supports flexible minimum order quantities for emerging indie brands and scales to full national retail launches. Its go-to-market is sales-led and consultative, with an inbound "Request a Call / Ask an Expert" intake funnel, educational content marketing through the Vanguard Soap blog, and event-driven outreach. Customer segments span emerging private label brands, national retailers and consumer brands, and hospitality groups (hotels, spas, gyms), with ISO 9001:2015, FDA OTC, OTCO Organic, RSPO, and Non-GMO Verified certifications positioned as the central trust credentials.

Name

Vanguard Soap LLC

Legal name

Vanguard Soap, LLC

Website

https://vanguardsoap.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1943

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Vanguard Soap LLC is a family-owned Memphis-based contract manufacturer of bar soaps, liquid soaps, body washes, and proprietary ValPure soap bases, serving emerging private label brands, national retailers, and hospitality groups with vertically integrated, US-made production since 1943.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Personal Care Contract Manufacturing

NAICS

Soap and Cleaning Compound Manufacturing (32561)

SIC

Soap, Detergents, Cleang Preparations, Perfumes, Cosmetics (2840), Perfumes, Cosmetics & Other Toilet Preparations (2844)

akta.pro primary industry

Bar Soap & Syndet Bars (CRABAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Spa Body Treatments & Massage (Oils, Scrubs, Wraps) (CRABALAG)

Keywords

• Contract soap manufacturing
• Bar soap production
• Private label soap
• Personal care manufacturing
• Liquid soap contract

Headquarters

HQ city

Memphis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Contract and Private Label Soap Manufacturing: Vanguard Soap generates revenue primarily through B2B contract manufacturing and private label manufacturing agreements for bar soaps, liquid soaps, body washes, and soap bases. Clients include private label brands, branded companies, retailers, and hospitality groups. Revenue is generated per-batch/per-order under manufacturing agreements, with scalable production from small test runs to full-scale national launches exceeding 350 million bars annually.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Vanguard Soap LLC is a B2B contract manufacturer of bar soaps and liquid personal care products, operating a vertically integrated facility in Memphis, Tennessee. The company produces private-label and branded bar soaps, liquid hand soaps and body washes, traditional kettle-process soap bases, and specialty personal care items such as shampoo bars, deodorants, and body scrubs for retailers, hospitality groups, and consumer product companies.

Product overview

Vanguard Soap LLC is a vertically integrated, turnkey provider of custom soap manufacturing and personal care solutions based in Memphis, TN. Their product portfolio consists of three core offerings: Bar Soaps (produced using high-speed extrusion lines with annual capacity exceeding 350 million bars), Liquid Soaps & Body Washes (available in multiple viscosities with various packaging options), and Soap Bases (including their proprietary ValPure line of tallow/coco, vegetable, and organic bases made via the traditional kettle process). Beyond these core products, they offer specialty products including Solid Shampoo & Conditioner Bars, Hot Pour Deodorants, and Whips & Scrubs. All offerings support private label and contract manufacturing with capabilities ranging from small-batch runs to full-scale national production.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ValPure: Private label soap base product line including ValPure 85/15 TC, 80/20 TC, 75/25 PC Plus, 80/20 P/PKO Plus, and organic certified variants.

Products and services

• Bar Soaps

Quantifiable outcome

• Annual production capacity exceeding 350 million bars
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Dudley Products: Contract and private label manufacturer of personal care products including bar soaps. Comparable B2B manufacturer serving mid-market and enterprise brand customers across personal care categories.
• Irving Consumer Group: Personal care contract manufacturer offering formulation, filling, and packaging services for brand customers. Comparable as a turnkey B2B manufacturer of soaps and personal care products with flexible MOQs for emerging and established brands.
• McBride plc: European private label manufacturer of household cleaning and personal care products including bar and liquid soaps. Closely comparable as a vertically integrated private label/contract soap and cleaning products manufacturer serving retailer brand programs.
• Apollo Health and Beauty Care: Contract manufacturer of personal care, beauty, and home care products serving private label and brand clients. Highly comparable B2B contract manufacturing model across soaps, body washes, and adjacent personal care categories.
• Bradford Soap Works: Specialty soap manufacturer producing bar soaps and soap bases for branded and private label customers. Direct peer in soap base formulation and bar soap manufacturing, similar end markets.
• Vi-Jon: U.S. private label manufacturer of personal care and household products. Direct comparable peer in private label soap and personal care manufacturing for retail and brand customers.
• Kolmar Laboratories: U.S.-based contract manufacturer specializing in personal care, cosmetics, and OTC products for brand and private label clients. Comparable as a B2B contract developer and manufacturer serving indie through enterprise beauty/personal care brands.

Broad incumbents

• Method Products (People Against Dirty): Sustainability-focused cleaning and personal care brand across liquid soaps, body washes, and home care. Comparable as a clean, sustainably positioned personal care brand that competes for the same shelf-space and retailer attention Vanguard's clients are built around.
• Church & Dwight: Diversified consumer products company with bar soap and personal care brands. Overlaps as a major U.S. player in the same categories Vanguard manufactures private label products for.
• Henkel: Global consumer products company with major soap and detergent brands (e.g., Dial). Comparable as a larger incumbent in the broader soap and cleaning products market with overlapping categories and customer relationships.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/vanguard-soap
• Facebookfacebook.com/vanguardsoap

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Vanguard Soap LLC