What Stéarinerie Dubois does

Stéarinerie Dubois is a French family-owned specialty chemicals manufacturer founded in 1820 and headquartered in Boulogne-Billancourt, France, with production operations in Scoury and an R&D Formulation Lab (FabLab) in Poitiers. The company produces fatty esters and lipophilic ingredients using green-chemistry processes (reversible, balanced, athermal) and serves four end-markets: Cosmetics (emollients, emulsifiers, moisturizers, thickeners, solubilizers — with COSMOS, ECOCERT, and NATRUE certified options); Pharmaceutical/Health (GMP excipients for human and veterinary routes including oral, topical, rectal, vaginal, and parenteral, with RSPO and Kosher certifications); Food (sucroesters, glazing, coating, releasing agents for confectionery, bakery, and snacks, EU food contact compliant); and Functional Specialties/Industry (sustainable esters for polymer, biopolymer, and elastomer processing, concrete curing, paints, and coatings). Branded proprietary products include DUB INFINITE (2024), DUB ESTOLINE® (2018), ESTOGREEN A325 (2021), DUB G-SMART, DUB DIOL, DUB OE HP, and the TACTILE® editorial collection (2026).

The commercial model is B2B industrial sales, primarily direct to large enterprise customers in cosmetics, pharma, food, and industrial sectors, supplemented by exclusive distribution partnerships with Safic-Alcan in the UK and BeNeLux for pharmaceutical excipients, Ricardo Molina in Spain/Portugal for industrial polymers, and Seil International in South Korea. Revenue is generated from proprietary ester product sales (sold under branding and certifications that lock in switching costs for regulated customers) and from custom/toll manufacturing services covering pelletizing, esterification, refining (deodorization, discoloration, neutralization), and bespoke pharmaceutical excipient development. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market relies on trade-show presence across in-cosmetics Global, Cosmet'Agora, CPHI, Food Ingredients Europe, ProSweets, Gulfood Manufacturing, and EUROCOAT, supplemented by a French-and-English bilingual website with a blog and LinkedIn presence.

The company is described as the only French expert in ester production, holds a multi-decade operating heritage, and has been awarded EcoVadis Gold sustainability rating since 2017. It is structured as a Société Anonyme with share capital of €1,008,000, led by Hervé Plessix as Directeur Général Délégué, and operates with 101–250 employees across France.

Name

Stéarinerie Dubois

Legal name

Stéarinerie Dubois Fils SA

Website

https://stearinerie-dubois.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1820

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Stéarinerie Dubois is a 200-year-old French family-owned manufacturer of fatty esters and lipophilic ingredients, serving enterprise customers in cosmetics, pharmaceutical/health, food, and industrial specialties via proprietary brands, custom manufacturing, and global distribution partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Chemical Manufacturing

NAICS

Fats and Oils Refining and Blending (311225), Starch and Vegetable Fats and Oils Manufacturing (31122), Food Manufacturing (311)

SIC

Fats & Oils (2070), Food And Kindred Products (2000), Miscellaneous Chemical Products (2890)

akta.pro primary industry

Fats, Oils & Lipid Ingredients (Specialty Oils, MCTs, Structured Lipids) (CRADAOAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Mono- & Diglycerides (E471) & Derivatives (DATEM, SSL/CSL, Lactylates) (AFAJACAB), Sucrose Esters & Polyglycerol Esters (PGE) (AFAJACAD), Structured Lipids & Oleogels (Fat Replacers, Organogels) (AFAJALAJ)

Keywords

• Fatty ester manufacturing
• Cosmetic ingredients
• Pharmaceutical excipients
• Food coating agents
• Industrial specialty esters

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulogne-billancourt

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Ester product sales: Sale of proprietary ester compounds to cosmetics, pharmaceutical, food, and industrial customers including emollients, emulsifiers, thickeners, and functional ingredients.
2. Custom/toll manufacturing: Custom esterification, pelletizing, and refining operations performed to customer specifications.
3. Contract manufacturing: Tailored-made services for pharmaceutical excipients with dedicated technical support for customer developments.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Stéarinerie Dubois manufactures and sells proprietary fatty acid esters and lipophilic ingredients used as emollients, emulsifiers, moisturizers, thickeners, pharmaceutical excipients, food coating and glazing agents, and industrial functional specialties. The company operates across four business sectors (cosmetic, health, food, and functional specialties/industry) and also offers custom esterification, pelletizing, and refining contract manufacturing services with dedicated technical support.

Product overview

Stéarinerie Dubois is a French family-owned company and the only French expert in the production of esters, with a 200-year heritage dating to 1820. The company offers a complete range of fatty esters and lipophilic products, operating across four business sectors: Cosmetic (esters for responsible formulations including emollients, emulsifiers, moisturizers), Health (GMP pharmaceutical excipients for human and veterinary applications), Food (ingredients for confectionery, glazing, and food processing), and Functional Specialties/Industry (sustainable esters for technical and polymer applications). Key product lines include DUB INFINITE (luxury ester launched 2024), DUB ESTOLINE® (nature-inspired ester launched 2018), ESTOGREEN A325 (vegetal-origin oligomer for biopolymers launched 2021), and DUB G-SMART (functional ingredient for innovative textures). The company provides custom manufacturing services (pelletizing, esterification, refining) and operates a FabLab collaboration facility in Poitiers. Products are certified for ISO 9001, GMP (IPEG PQG), Cosmos, Ecocert, NATRUE, RSPO, Kosher, and comply with REACH regulations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• STEARINERIE DUBOIS Pharma: Pharmaceutical division specializing in excipients for human and animal health
• STEARINERIE DUBOIS Cosmétique
• DUB ESTOLINE
• DUB INFINITE
• ESTOGREEN A325
• TACTILE Collection
• DUB G-Smart
• DUB Diol
• DUB OE HP

Products and services

• Fatty Esters Complete range of lipophilic ester products used as the company's foundational offering across cosmetics, pharmaceutical, food, and industrial applications.
• Cosmetic Esters Ester products for cosmetic formulations offering responsible formulation choices, including emollients, emulsifiers, moisturizers, solubilizers, and thickeners for creams, lotions, and minimalist formulations, certified to Cosmos, Ecocert, and NATRUE natural cosmetics standards.
• Pharmaceutical Excipients GMP pharmaceutical and medical device excipients serving as formulation tools for human and veterinary markets across oral, topical, rectal, vaginal, and parenteral routes, with RSPO, GMP, and Kosher certified offerings.
• Food Ingredients Food industry solutions including confectionery glazing, candy coating, surface finishing, unmolding and releasing agents, and sucroesters for bakery, biscuits, snacks, hard boiled candies, jellies, extruded licorice, and confectionery.
• Functional Specialties / Industrial Esters Sustainable esters for technical solutions in polymer, biopolymer, and elastomer applications, including products for thermoplastic processing, concrete curing, paint formulations, pigment pastes, and candle wax (RAL certified) applications.
• DUB INFINITE Functional ester ingredient launched in 2024 designed for luxury minimalist cosmetic formulations, expressing health, beauty, and natural skin radiance.
• DUB ESTOLINE® Nature-inspired functional ester ingredient for cosmetic formulations featuring new sensorial properties.
• ESTOGREEN A325 Vegetal-origin oligomer that significantly improves processability of thermoplastics, mainly biopolymers, by decreasing compound viscosity, compliant to EU food contact regulation and readily biodegradable.
• DUB G-SMART Versatile and functional ester ingredient for innovative cosmetic textures.
• Custom Manufacturing Services Contract manufacturing operations including pelletizing (pastillage), esterification, and refining services (deodorization, discoloration, neutralization), provided as a tailored-made service with dedicated technical support for customer developments.
• FabLab Customer collaboration facility in Poitiers designed to share, experiment, train, learn, formulate, and develop together, dedicated to industry, pharmacy, and cosmetics applications.
• TACTILE® Collection Editorial and scientific publication series exploring the science of touch from molecule to perception, from ester structure to sensory emotion, with OPUS 1 as the first volume.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Association Chimie Du VégétalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2022Stéarinerie Dubois joined the board of the Association Chimie Du Végétal, represented by Hervé Plessix (Director General Délégué). The company supports the association's ambitions for French biosourced ingredients, materials and products development.
• Ricardo MolinacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 April 2021Distributor partnership for polymer, biopolymer and elastomer applications in Spain and Portugal for the industry market. Stéarinerie Dubois and Ricardo Molina deliver together products for the functional specialties/industrial market.
• Safic-Alcan UKcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 November 2020Exclusive distribution partnership for Stéarinerie Dubois' pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and medical device ranges in the United Kingdom. Partnership established in November 2020, with Safic-Alcan taking over exclusive distribution rights.
• Safic-Alcan BeNeLuxcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 October 2020Exclusive distribution partnership for Stéarinerie Dubois' pharmaceutical, nutraceutical and medical device ranges in Belgium, Netherlands, and Luxembourg. Partnership established in October 2020.
• Afnor Publication - Climate Resilience BookminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2019Stéarinerie Dubois featured as a case study in the book 'Climate Resilience and Biodiversity' published by Michèle Champagne for Afnor, alongside other French companies like Michelin, Avril, and Veolia.
• Seil InternationalminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 June 2018Korean market distributor for cosmetic ingredients. Shared booth arrangement at In-Cosmetics Korea 2018 for product showcasing.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Stepan Company: Stepan manufactures specialty surfactants, esters, and polymers for personal care, pharmaceutical, and food ingredient markets. Its ester and emulsifier product lines directly overlap with Stéarinerie Dubois's cosmetic and food ingredient offerings, making it a relevant direct peer.
• IOI Oleo GmbH: IOI Oleo is a German-based specialty oleochemical manufacturer producing esters, emollients, and surfactants for personal care, pharmaceuticals, and food. It is one of the closest direct competitors to Stéarinerie Dubois, particularly in cosmetic and pharmaceutical ester categories, with a similar specialty-lipid focus.
• AAK (AarhusKarlshamn): AAK is a Swedish-Danish specialty oils and fats company producing vegetable oil-based ingredients for cosmetics, food, and industrial applications. Its specialty ester and lipid ingredient offering directly competes with Stéarinerie Dubois in food and personal care markets.
• Gattefossé: Gattefossé is a France-based, family-owned specialty ingredient company supplying lipid-based excipients and cosmetic actives for personal care and pharmaceutical applications. It is highly comparable to Stéarinerie Dubois in scale, French family-business heritage, and ester/lipid chemistry focus.
• KLK OLEO: KLK OLEO is a Malaysian oleochemical producer manufacturing fatty esters, glycerides, and specialty fatty acids for personal care and food applications. As a mid-to-large specialty ester producer, it competes with Stéarinerie Dubois particularly in food-grade and cosmetic-grade esters.
• Emery Oleochemicals: Emery Oleochemicals is a global manufacturer of natural-based specialty chemicals including esters, fatty acids, and glycerin for personal care, food, and industrial markets. Its product portfolio overlaps directly with Stéarinerie Dubois's four-segment offering.

Others

• Safic-Alcan: Safic-Alcan is a French-headquartered specialty chemical distributor that is also Stéarinerie Dubois's exclusive pharmaceutical distribution partner in UK and BeNeLux. While not a product competitor, it is a key channel and ecosystem participant serving overlapping cosmetic and pharmaceutical customers.

Broad incumbents

• Evonik Industries: Evonik's Care Solutions division supplies specialty esters, emulsifiers, and conditioning agents for cosmetics and personal care. As a global specialty chemicals major, it competes broadly with Stéarinerie Dubois in cosmetic and industrial ester markets with significantly greater scale and global manufacturing footprint.
• Croda International: Croda is a global specialty chemicals leader serving personal care, health care, and food markets with a broad ingredient portfolio including esters, emollients, and actives. It is a much larger, multi-site incumbent that competes with Stéarinerie Dubois in cosmetic and pharmaceutical ester categories but offers a far wider product range.
• BASF Care Chemicals: BASF's personal care and nutrition divisions produce a wide range of esters, emollients, and lipid-based ingredients for cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and food. It is a broad incumbent competitor with global reach that overlaps significantly with all four of Stéarinerie Dubois's end-markets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stearinerie-dubois
• Facebookfacebook.com/166096693593277

Compliance10 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Stéarinerie Dubois