From Lab to Shelf: How The Ordinary Develops Ideas into Products Under One Roof

Every product starts within our Innovation department, where our Applied Research team is constantly ideating new concepts with the goal of eventually turning them into real products. This is where ideas take shape; whether it's optimizing a known ingredient or exploring a new innovation. Formulation chemists within our Research and Development (R&D) team then take these concepts to develop formulation prototypes. But a prototype isn't a finished product. It's just the starting point.

From here, formulas move, often just steps away, into the next stages of evaluation, where key questions are answered:

• Is it stable over time?

• Is it safe for skin?

• Does it actually perform as intended?

Once we have promising formula prototypes, they move into Clinical Research, also housed within our Toronto HQ. Here, they’re evaluated under a range of conditions, including both in-vitro and in-vivo testing to validate these prototypes and for proof of concept. This stage helps confirm how the formula performs to support claims such as hydration, texture, visible results, and more - while informing the refinements that ultimately shape the final formula.

At the same time, our Microbiology team, just down the hall, ensures the formula remains safe throughout its use. This includes testing for contamination resistance and verifying that preservative systems are effective.

Because these teams are housed in our HQ, insights can be shared in real time, strengthening the quality of every test and result.

To fully understand a formula, it’s also evaluated through Analytical and Stability testing, both now fully integrated within our expanded HQ labs.

• Analytical testing precisely measures what’s in a formula, confirming ingredient levels and consistency.

• Stability testing assesses how a product performs over time under different conditions, such as extreme temperature, ensuring it maintains its integrity from first use to last. It establishes shelf life and confirms products remain safe, effective, and consistent with their intended performance.

Bringing these capabilities onsite brings a depth of understanding, allowing teams to iterate quickly and with greater confidence.

Once a formula has been finalized within our HQ labs, it undergoes additional safety and efficacy testing through independent third-party testing laboratories. This added layer of assessment helps ensure results are evaluated objectively, minimizing potential biases and strengthening confidence in the claims we make. It's one of the ways brands ensure skincare efficacy and safety.

These studies may include safety assessments for skin compatibility and irritation potential, as well as efficacy studies using instrumental measurements and expert grading to objectively evaluate visible product benefits. Consumer and sensory studies may also be conducted to better understand the user experience.

Combined with the close collaboration of our in-house scientific teams, this additional layer of testing helps ensure our formulas are supported by robust, objective evidence.

Each stage of development plays a distinct role, but the real strength comes from how they work together.

When all of our scientific labs - R&D, Clinical Research, Microbiology, Analytical, and Stability - coexist under one roof, collaboration becomes continuous:

• A stability concern can prompt a formulation adjustment

• A clinical insight can lead to deeper analytical investigation

• A microbiological result can refine preservation strategies

This constant dialogue is what turns good formulas into great ones.

It’s also the realization of a long-held vision from our late founder, Brandon Truaxe. He believed that housing all scientific functions together would enable more open communication, greater agility, and ultimately better products.

Today, that vision lives within our Toronto headquarters - home to over 20,000 square feet of integrated lab space and a team of 170+ scientists - allowing us to collaborate more closely and bring ideas to life, every day.

Because every formula is developed, tested, and refined within our HQ labs, it benefits from the continuous scientific oversight brought by real-time collaboration. Each product is evaluated from multiple perspectives, from the scientists who first ideated the concept to the ones that tested the final formula. These are products you can trust.

Expanding and integrating our lab spaces isn’t just about having more room, it’s about strengthening how we do science.

By bringing every stage of development into one connected environment, we’re able to ask better questions, move with intention, and stay grounded in evidence at every step.

It’s a way of working that reflects who we’ve always been; science-first, transparent, and deeply committed to doing things properly; from lab to shelf.