BeanTown Chemical

What BeanTown Chemical does

BeanTown Chemical is a privately-held manufacturer, distributor, and supplier of research chemicals, metals, and materials headquartered in Hudson, New Hampshire. The company was formed in 2014 by a former President of Alfa Aesar and operates with a headcount in the 11-50 range. It offers more than 7,000 products organized into nine categories — Analytical Products, Inorganic Products, Organic Products, Organometallic Products, Precious Metal Compounds, Precious Metals, Pure Elements and Alloys, Rare Earth Compounds, and Solvents — available in pre-packaged catalog sizes as well as semi-bulk and bulk quantities. Beyond catalog distribution, the company provides Custom Synthesis and Special Packaging services for non-standard requirements.

The business runs on a dual-channel go-to-market: a self-serve e-commerce storefront (beantownchem.com) that accepts major credit cards without requiring customer registration, paired with a Bulk Quote (RFQ) system for larger-than-catalog quantities handled by an inside-sales team reachable via toll-free phone, local line, and dedicated sales and technical email addresses. Pricing for catalog items is publicly displayed per unit (e.g., Cyclopentane 250ml at $39.70), with bulk orders quoted on request. The platform is PCI-DSS compliant and uses SSL encryption for transactions.

Customer segments span research and development organizations (academic institutions, pharmaceutical and biotechnology firms), industrial and manufacturing buyers requiring chemicals at ACS/HPLC/specialty grades, and laboratory and testing facilities needing analytical standards and reference materials. The company does not disclose revenue, funding, or management team information in available source data. All operations are domestic to the United States, with products shipped directly from the New Hampshire warehouse in compliance with DOT hazmat regulations.

Name

BeanTown Chemical

Legal name

BeanTown Chemical

Website

https://beantownchem.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

BeanTown Chemical is a private US manufacturer and distributor of research chemicals, metals, and materials, offering 7,000+ products across nine categories to academic, pharmaceutical, biotech, and industrial customers via e-commerce and bulk RFQ channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Hudson

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. Product Sales - Catalog Items: One-time transaction-based sales of research chemicals, metals, and materials through the company's e-commerce platform. Products are sold in pre-packaged catalog sizes with per-unit pricing displayed on the website.
2. Bulk and Semi-Bulk Orders: Sales of larger quantities beyond standard catalog sizes through the Bulk Quote (RFQ) system. The company actively encourages customers to request quotes for larger quantities, offering potential time and cost savings for bulk buyers.
3. Custom Synthesis and Special Packaging: Value-added services for custom-synthesized products and specialized packaging, providing additional revenue streams from non-standard product requirements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

BeanTown Chemical manufactures, distributes, and supplies research chemicals, metals, and materials for research and development applications. The company offers over 7,000 products organized into nine main categories (analytical, inorganic, organic, organometallic, precious metal compounds, precious metals, pure elements and alloys, rare earth compounds, and solvents), available in pre-packaged catalog sizes and in semi-bulk and bulk quantities. The company also provides custom synthesis and special packaging services for non-standard requirements.

Product overview

BeanTown Chemical is a manufacturer, distributor, and supplier of research chemicals, metals, and materials for research and development applications. The company offers over 7,000 products through a comprehensive catalog organized into nine main product categories: Analytical Products, Inorganic Products, Organic Products, Organometallic Products, Precious Metal Compounds, Precious Metals, Pure Elements and Alloys, Rare Earth Compounds, and Solvents. Products are available in pre-packaged catalog sizes as well as semi-bulk and bulk quantities. The company also provides custom synthesis and special packaging services for larger than catalog quantities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Analytical Products

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Former Alfa Aesar PresidentcoreOthersThe company was formed by a former President of Alfa Aesar, a major player in the research chemicals industry. This founder relationship provides industry expertise, credibility, and likely insights into customer needs and market positioning.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Oakwood Chemical: Oakwood Chemical manufactures and distributes research-scale organics, inorganics, and specialty reagents with a similar focus on catalog and custom synthesis for R&D customers.
• Spectrum Chemical: Spectrum Chemical manufactures and distributes USP/NF/FCC-grade chemicals, lab reagents, and solvents to pharmaceutical and R&D customers — directly comparable catalog distribution with custom packaging capabilities.
• Acros Organics (Thermo Fisher): Acros Organics is a research-grade organics and inorganics brand sold through Fisher Scientific, overlapping BeanTown's organic/inorganic categories and serving the same academic and industrial R&D buyers.
• TCI Chemicals: TCI is a specialty chemical manufacturer and distributor offering organics, inorganics, organometallics, analytical reagents, and custom synthesis — closely mirroring BeanTown's catalog scope and academic/industrial R&D customer base.
• Alfa Aesar: Alfa Aesar is the research chemicals brand BeanTown's founder previously led; now under Thermo Fisher, it offers a near-identical product mix (organics, inorganics, precious metals, pure elements) and is the most cited competitive benchmark on BeanTown's own website.
• Combi-Blocks: Combi-Blocks sells building blocks, organics, and heterocycles for drug discovery and academic R&D, with catalog e-commerce and custom synthesis — a comparable niche chemistry distributor.
• Strem Chemicals: Strem specializes in organometallics, catalysts, and high-purity research chemicals, serving academic and industrial R&D with catalog distribution and custom synthesis — a near-direct peer in niche chemistry.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific (incl. Alfa Aesar): Thermo Fisher owns Alfa Aesar — the very brand BeanTown's founder previously led — and serves research and industrial customers with an overlapping catalog of chemicals, metals, and materials at global scale.
• MilliporeSigma (Sigma-Aldrich): MilliporeSigma, the life science business of Merck KGaA, is the dominant global distributor of research chemicals, solvents, and analytical standards — directly overlapping BeanTown's organic, inorganic, organometallic, and solvent categories with far greater catalog depth and global reach.
• Honeywell Research Chemicals (incl. Fluka): Honeywell sells high-purity solvents, reagents, and analytical chemicals under the Fluka and Riedel-de Haën brands, directly overlapping BeanTown's solvents and analytical product categories at industrial scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/profile.php

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 BeanTown Chemical