At Dick Johnson's factory!
Did you know that almost all of Dick Johnson's own products are handcrafted domestically in Tuusula?
We visited our factory, which has been awarded the stringent ECOCERT and COSMOS certifications as a mark of quality natural cosmetics production.
Located on Amerintie in Tuusula is Nordic BioCosmetic Production Oy - a factory partly owned by Dick Johnson himself. We even call it "Dick's Brewery." Here, all the classics like Pallivaha and God Spray are made, while the factory's chemists develop and test new formulas for production. Developing domestic natural cosmetics is a long and time-consuming process, but the results speak for themselves.
According to factory manager Kirsi Kettunen, the future of Finnish natural cosmetics is bright, and demand is high. We also offer Private Label cosmetics, feel free to get in touch (asiakas@dick.fi)
– Recipes developed in Finland together with the customer and Nordic ingredients fascinate both our Finnish and international customers.
The factory warehouse is stocked with canisters and barrels of various oils used to make perfumes or skincare products.
From Idea to Recipe
The journey of a new product always begins in the laboratory, where the product's recipe is developed. Product developer Jenni Rönkä creates an initial recipe based on customer wishes and selects the raw materials to be used. In natural cosmetics development, the purity and origin of raw materials are crucial, and verifying the origin of the ingredients used in the recipe plays a significant role in product development.
– Documentation probably takes up most of my time, Rönkä reflects.
According to Rönkä, the hot topics in product development lately have been shampoos, conditioners, creams, serums, toners, and facial oils. In addition to a pleasant scent, texture, and effect, product safety is an important aspect of new product development. Once the right recipe is found, its durability is thoroughly tested through various stability and microbial tests.
Product developer Jenni Rönkä says that documentation is the most time-consuming part of creating organic cosmetics.
Next up is preparing test batches. With the recipe suggested by the product developer, the lab technician prepares a small test batch, whose properties are closely examined. Based on these observations, the recipe is refined and developed in the desired direction, especially if ingredients that seemed good on paper produce an unpleasant scent or incorrect texture in the finished product.
– Some products work in theory but not at all in practice, says lab technician Irina Närvänen.
According to the lab technician, the initial recipe of a product usually undergoes significant changes during product development. The lab technicians at the factory alternate between product development and quality control to maintain consistent quality. The simplest test batch of a product requiring mixing can be done in an instant, but those requiring boiling need long monitoring and attention.
Lab technician Irina Närvänen says that sometimes a recipe that seemed good on paper doesn't work at all in practice.
Usually, multiple versions are made at once, and the best one is chosen to proceed.
– There may be ten to twenty different versions of a product at a time, Närvänen describes.
When the recipe is fine-tuned, a series of tests follows. The decrease in added microbes in the product is monitored for a month, which indicates the effectiveness of the preservatives in the product. Samples are taken from each finished product batch, making it easy and quick to identify any potential issues or defective batches.
High-Quality Raw Materials as Keys to Success
Buyer Aleksi Rönkä is responsible for the procurement of the raw materials used by the factory. Continuous production requires a steady supply of raw materials and their organization. According to Rönkä, various oils are the most important ingredient in cosmetics production.
– Sunflower oil, shea butter, and almond oil are the kind that you can easily order by the pallet or container.
Buyer Aleksi Rönkä presents the large vat where Dick Johnson's Pallivaha is cooked and whipped.
According to Rönkä, sunflower oil in particular is used in almost all oil-containing cosmetics, and the factory orders it in 900 kg containers every one or two months. The raw materials for Snake Oil, one of Dick Johnson's most popular products, include argan, jojoba, and almond oils, which are also top items on the buyer's procurement list. Shea butter for Pallivaha is also ordered several times.
The supply chains prefer domestic and reliable partners, although exotic raw materials often come from abroad. The most popular domestic raw material is birch sap.
Packaging on the Production Line
Once the recipe is refined, the right raw materials are found, and the appropriate tests are completed, production can begin on a larger scale. Each product requires its own approach: for example, the versatile Pallivaha gets its fluffiness and texture in a specially prepared large vat where shea butter is mixed. The finished mixture is extruded into jars, which are then labeled and stamped by machine.
Snake Balm beard wax boxes are waiting to be packed from the batch produced just yesterday.
Production supervisor Katri Kivimäki says that there are many moving parts in producing high-quality cosmetics. She is responsible for arranging the production lines so that production and packaging run smoothly. A work card is also created for each product being worked on, showing the production schedule, batch size, and other details. A giant batch of Dick Johnson's Snake Balm beard wax was just completed yesterday.
According to the supervisor, arranging the production chain is about optimizing the process and careful planning. For example, the new type of cardboard packaging used by Dick Johnson has received praise.
– I love the snap-open boxes because the foldable ones take up a lot of time from other tasks, says Kivimäki.
Optimization of the production line often starts with small things. According to production supervisor Katri Kivimäki, snap-open packaging that does not require folding saves a lot of time.
Various creams and serums packed in tubes are also well-received, as tubing is a fast-paced task that can quickly produce large volumes.
Logistics and warehouse manager Micke Lindqvist is fine-tuning the tube packaging machine for today's face cream packaging. The cleansing product itself was boiled earlier today, and now follows transferring the mixture to the packaging machine, which extrudes the product into tubes and seals the ends. The sales-ready tube pops out of the machine and into a basket.
– It’s going as smoothly as Strömsö, except we're not building a sauna, Lindqvist chuckles.
Logistics and warehouse manager Micke Lindqvist fine-tuning the tube machine for face cream packaging.
The factory has a total of five production lines, each capable of producing about 2,000-5,000 products per day at full capacity, depending on product-specific differences. According to the supervisor, Dick Johnson's Snake Balm beard wax requires more production steps compared to, for instance, Pallivaha, as the beard wax must cool in shape in the jar after extrusion before the lid is applied and stamps are added.
The Pallivaha canning machine extrudes the finished cream into jars, seals the lid, and applies the label and stamps.
It's busy in the laboratory, on the production line, and in packaging: the factory is fulfilling orders at full volume, and the quantities are continuously growing. Factory manager Kirsi Kettunen says the new production line opening soon will further increase capacity.
– The current lines produce about 3,000-5,000 products per day, but our new line can make up to 5,000-9,000 products in the same time.
Text: Teemu Peltoniemi
Photos: Petri Huhtinen