Motion Equity Partners has acquired a majority stake in Capsum, a unique innovation and manufacturing partner of the most prestigious beauty houses, alongside Sébastien Bardon, its founding CEO, and its management team.
Founded in 2008, Capsum partners with the world’s leading beauty houses to develop and manufacture highly innovative cosmetic products. The Group is notably recognized for its pioneering and unique expertise in microfluidics, a proprietary technology used to encapsulate active ingredients and create visually distinctive and highly sensorial textures. Capsum has progressively evolved into a multi-technology CDMO, developing and manufacturing both microfluidic and non-microfluidic products across skincare, makeup, haircare, and fragrance.
Leveraging its cutting-edge technology and unique industrial expertise, Capsum has established itself as a partner of choice for leading luxury and prestige beauty brands (including Chanel, Elizabeth Arden, Galénic, La Prairie, L’Occitane, Meaningful Beauty), developing distinctive and market-leading hero-products. Under Sébastien Bardon’s leadership, the Capsum team, composed of 270 people, of which one third is involved in R&D, is committed to lead pioneering innovation across its core segments such as skincare, makeup, haircare, and fragrance.
Over the past twelve years, the Group has grown fifteenfold to reach close to €80m in sales (significantly outperforming the CDMO cosmetic market), with around one-third generated in the US. Capsum has successfully penetrated the US market, notably through the greenfield opening of a state-of-the art production site with the highest sustainability standards in Austin, Texas, in 2020. In Europe it recently opened a new site near Marseille, France.
Motion EP will support Capsum to activate new growth drivers. In the US, Capsum will leverage its established presence and the recent acquisition of the clean beauty formulator KKT Labs to expand its commercial footprint and accelerate its multi-technology offering beyond microfluidics. Today, close to 40% of Capsum’s US business is already non-microfluidic. In Asia, where market potential is deep, there are significant growth opportunities. With more than 11% of sales dedicated to R&D each year, its ambition is also to capture new high-potential adjacencies for the Group.
Motion EP has acquired the stake from Chanel, which as a long-standing partner in Capsum will remain a minority shareholder in the company.
“Today marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for Capsum and KKT Labs. Together with Motion Equity Partners and Chanel, we are uniquely positioned to accelerate growth. By bringing together science, technology, manufacturing excellence, and respect for nature, we will raise the bar for beauty innovation. I am sincerely grateful to my mentors, our longstanding shareholder, our teams, and the clients who have placed their trust in us. Thank you for being part of this journey. The best is yet to come. Onward!”, said Sébastien Bardon, Founder and CEO of Capsum.
“We have been deeply impressed by Capsum’s unique positioning at the intersection of technology, beauty and industrial excellence. Capsum is a science-led company where innovation and sustainability are engineered end to end. The Group has known a remarkable journey, from scientific breakthrough to a distinctive innovation platform. With a unique technological know-how and outstanding innovation capabilities, Capsum has developed privileged relationships with the world’s leading beauty brands. We are delighted to partner with Sébastien Bardon and the entire Capsum team, and look forward to supporting them in this ambitious new phase of growth”, said Patrick Eisenchteter, Managing Partner at Motion Equity Partners.
