What McKenna Labs does

McKenna Labs Inc. is a full-service personal care contract manufacturer operating from a 185,000–275,000 sq ft FDA cGMP-certified facility in Fullerton, California. Founded in 1998 by Dennis Owen, who remains hands-on CEO, the company provides end-to-end manufacturing services — including R&D formulation, compounding, filling, capping, coding, labeling, quality control with on-site microbiology, validated USP purified water, and warehousing — to personal care, cosmetic, and OTC pharmaceutical brands. Its technology stack centers on industrial manufacturing equipment rather than software, with tank capacities up to 4,000 gallons and up to 10 simultaneous filling lines capable of handling 0.5 ml vials to 1-gallon containers in tubes, bottles, jars, airless pumps, and vials.

The company operates a sales-led B2B model with a minimum order quantity of 20,000 units per SKU and quote-based custom pricing. Revenue is generated through contract manufacturing fees (transaction-based production services) and optional formula ownership licensing, where customers can either buy formula IP upfront or build the cost into product pricing. Its go-to-market is heavily referral-driven, with the majority of new business sourced from existing satisfied customers; the company is a four-time winner of Dermalogica's Supplier of the Year award. McKenna Labs holds an unusually dense regulatory certification portfolio — FDA registration, California DHHS licensing for Rx/OTC and medical devices, ISO 22716, RSPO, IFANCA Halal, and Kosher — positioning it to serve regulated and culturally segmented end markets. Leadership includes CFO Mike Gallegos (recently hired with multinational M&A and refinancing experience) and Senior VP of Sales Lana Tennant (20+ years in personal care). The company is privately held, founder-owned, and operates exclusively in the United States with no disclosed institutional investors, acquisitions, or fundraising activity.

Name

McKenna Labs

Legal name

McKenna Labs Inc.

Website

https://mckennalabs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

McKenna Labs is a full-service personal care contract manufacturer serving cosmetic, OTC pharmaceutical, and personal care brands with cGMP-certified production, R&D, and quality control from its 275,000 sq ft facility in Fullerton, CA.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contract Manufacturing Services

NAICS

Pharmaceutical Preparation Manufacturing (325412)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Process Development & Tech Transfer (Upstream/Downstream/MSAT) (HLAGAGAE)

Keywords

• Contract manufacturing services
• Personal care products
• Cosmetic manufacturing
• OTC drug manufacturing
• Formulation development

Headquarters

HQ city

Fullerton

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Contract Manufacturing Services: Revenue generated from manufacturing personal care, cosmetic, and OTC pharmaceutical products for brand customers. Clients can develop formulas with McKenna and either purchase formula ownership upfront or build it into the product cost.
2. Production Services: Revenue from production runs with a minimum order quantity of 20,000 units per SKU. Manufacturing timelines begin approximately 2-3 weeks following arrival of all components and materials. Services include compounding, filling, capping, coding, labeling, and safety sealing.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

McKenna Labs is a full-service personal care contract manufacturer that produces skin, hair, body care, cosmetic, and OTC topical pharmaceutical products on behalf of brand customers. Services span the entire production lifecycle, including R&D and formulation development, compounding, automated filling and packaging, in-house microbiological quality control, warehousing, and shipping, all delivered from an FDA cGMP-certified facility in Fullerton, CA with a 20,000-unit-per-SKU minimum order quantity.

Product overview

McKenna Labs is a full-service personal care contract manufacturer offering a unified platform of manufacturing services. The core offering combines OTC drug manufacturing, cosmetic manufacturing, and personal care product services, supported by integrated R&D (Research & Development Services), Quality Control & Assurance, and Warehousing & Shipping modules. The company operates from a 275,000-square foot FDA CGMP certified facility in Fullerton, CA, providing capabilities from formula development through final product delivery. Minimum order quantity is 20,000 units per SKU.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Personal Care Contract Manufacturing Services Full-service contract manufacturing for personal care products including skin, hair, and body care formulations. Services span the full product lifecycle from R&D and formulation development through compounding, filling, labeling, and warehousing, with a 20,000-unit minimum order quantity per SKU.
• OTC Drug Manufacturing FDA-registered contract manufacturing of topical OTC drug products, delivered under cGMP and other regulatory compliance requirements with validated USP purified water and on-site microbiology lab support.
• Cosmetic Manufacturing Registered cosmetic contract manufacturing certified to ISO 22716 Good Manufacturing Practices, covering skin care, hair care, and body care product categories and registered with California DHHS.
• Research & Development Services In-house R&D services by formulation chemists with over 70 years of combined experience in OTC and natural product development, offering new product development, formula updates, validations, and reverse engineering for personal care, cosmetic, and OTC products.
• Quality Control & Assurance Comprehensive quality control and quality assurance services including in-house microbiological testing, stability and compatibility testing, and compliance with USP and PCPC microbiology standards through an on-site validated Microbiology Lab.
• Warehousing & Shipping Warehousing services for raw materials, packaging components, and finished products with daily incoming and outgoing shipments, including inspection and traceability of all materials, plus on-site shipping operations supported by proximity to the Long Beach and Los Angeles ports.
• Formula Development & Ownership Custom formula development with options for formula ownership agreements, allowing customers to purchase developed formulas upfront or build those costs into per-unit product pricing for ongoing contract manufacturing.

Quantifiable outcome

• Minimum production run of 20,000 units per SKU
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Mibelle Group: Swiss-headquartered contract developer and manufacturer of personal care, cosmetics, and OTC products. Comparable end-market and service model to McKenna Labs but with international footprint and larger brand-customer roster.
• Vi-Jon: Large private-label manufacturer of personal care, beauty, and OTC health products across multiple US sites. Comparable to McKenna Labs in product categories and channels but operates at significantly larger scale and broader portfolio.
• Cosmax: South Korea-headquartered global contract manufacturer of cosmetics and personal care products serving major beauty brands. Comparable in contract manufacturing model but operates at much larger scale across multiple geographies.

Regional players

• Alchimia: Italian contract manufacturer specializing in cosmetics, personal care, and OTC topical products with formulation, filling, and packaging capabilities. Comparable service offering to McKenna Labs but serving primarily European beauty brands.
• Groupe Berkem: French specialty manufacturer of personal care, cosmetics, and plant-based chemical ingredients. Comparable in personal-care contract manufacturing focus but serves primarily European customers, making it a regional analog to McKenna's US-centric operation.

Direct peers

• Cosmetic Solutions: Boca Raton-based FDA-registered contract manufacturer of OTC topical drugs, cosmetics, and personal care products. Directly comparable to McKenna Labs in OTC-pharma manufacturing capability and beauty brand customer base.
• MANA Products: Full-service contract manufacturer of personal care, cosmetics, and OTC products with multiple US facilities. Closely comparable to McKenna Labs in service mix (R&D, formulation, filling, packaging) and target customer base of indie through enterprise beauty brands.
• CoValence Laboratories: Chandler, AZ-based personal care and OTC topical contract manufacturer offering formulation, compounding, filling, and packaging. Closely matches McKenna Labs in capability set, certifications, and mid-market brand focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance12 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

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 McKenna Labs