Development Chemist in London

Manage client technical relationships and drive innovative cosmetic formulation to ensure gold-standard technical excellence.

The Development Chemist role is to serve as the business’s key technical contact for a range of clients. The Development Chemist plays a key role in developing new formulations for our clients and supporting the rest of the Development Team. The Development Chemist provides technical advice to other departments to help manage project risks. The role supports the continuous innovation that the business strives to provide to our customers. The Development Chemist should deliver exceptional service, technical insight, and excellent, proactive internal and external communication.

The Responsibilities:

• Identifying, scoping and delivering training and continuous improvement across the whole department – including but not limited to formulation, process improvement, testing and wider scientific and industry insights.
• Contribute to departmental key performance indicators (KPIs) and support the Global Head of Research & Development in delivering the KPIs.
• Attend international trade shows and provide feedback and findings to the business.
• The key technical contact with clients on behalf of the business, maintaining regular professional written and verbal proactive communication on projects.
• Effectively manage projects across accounts, keeping to key project dates and timelines.
• Formulate and develop cosmetic formulations in line with client briefs.
• Supporting the Commercial & Marketing Team with proactive New Product Development on clients’ and wider businesses’ behalf, proactively creating innovative concepts for Orean Insights.
• Attend client meetings as required to support the Commercial Team.
• Contribute to the R&D team’s weekly lab batch capacity (guide of 5 per week).
• Send out presentable formulation samples to customers.
• Regular maintenance of batch-associated paperwork.
• Sign off on stability and compatibility reports to elaborate on shelf-life expectations to clients.
• Communicate regularly with raw material suppliers to stay up to date on the latest trends and innovations.
• Attend external seminars, workshops and trade shows and communicate findings to the broader business.
• COSHH assess raw material portfolio.
• Write MOMs and specs for successful manufacture.
• Assisted with formulation-related quality complaints and provided solutions.
• Provide solution-focused support for clients and key internal stakeholders on formulation-related issues.
• Any other duties requested by the Global Head of Research & Development.

The Skills:

• A degree (BSc or higher) in Cosmetic Science, Chemistry, or a related scientific discipline.
• Proven expertise in developing innovative cosmetic formulations from concept to completion.
• Ability to write Methods of Manufacture (MOMs) and technical specifications to ensure successful production scale-up.
• Proficiency in conducting COSHH assessments and managing stability/compatibility testing to determine product shelf-life.
• Experience in identifying training needs and delivering continuous improvement to upskill a technical department.
• Ability to help set, track, and achieve departmental Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
• A track record of providing technical advice to resolve quality complaints and formulation-related issues.
• Strong ability to manage multiple accounts simultaneously while adhering to strict project timelines.
• Excellent communication skills to act as the primary technical contact for global clients and internal commercial teams.
• A passion for staying ahead of industry trends by engaging with raw material suppliers and attending international trade shows.
• Proactive in creating new product concepts and delivering technical insights for business growth.

Why Join Orean?

By joining as a Development Chemist, you’ll become part of a team committed to manufacturing excellence, product safety and continuous improvement. You’ll benefit from working for a values-led employer that offers a supportive workplace culture, growth opportunities, and a meaningful role in ensuring high-quality standards for our products.

We are committed to equality of opportunity for all staff, and we encourage applications from individuals regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, or marriage and civil partnerships.