👋 Welcome
This database is a vetted, ready-to-use list of real cosmetic, wellness & fragrance manufacturers — every one checked on its own official website. Your job: use it to pick suppliers to reach out to. This guide shows you how, step by step. No prior experience needed.
What is this database?
A B2B supplier shortlist for our brand, across 4 product categories, each in its own Excel file:
📗 Essential_Oils.xlsx · 💄 Cosmetics.xlsx · 🧴 Bath_Body.xlsx · 🌸 Fragrance.xlsx
Each row is one manufacturer. Each column tells you something about them — who they are, what they make, which compliance certificates they hold, and how to contact them. Every ✅ was verified from the supplier's own website, and the proof link sits in the Notes column.
How to use it — the short version
1. Open the file for the category you need. 2. The best, most onboarding-ready suppliers (Tier 1) are already sorted to the top. 3. Work down the list using the Priority Tag. 4. Shortlist 2–3, compare them, then prepare your outreach. The next tabs walk you through each part.
📑 Section 1 — How to read the Excel files
Every file has the same 30 columns (A–AD). Here's what each one means in plain words.
| Col | Field | What it means (plain language) |
|---|
What "Tier 1" vs "Tier 2" means
Tier 1 — green row The supplier shows the top EU safety document (CPSR) on its site — or, for fragrance, a full IFRA certificate. These are the most ready to onboard with the least follow-up. Contact these first.
Tier 2 — yellow row The supplier has solid basics (manufacturing standard / batch certificate / safety sheet) but no CPSR yet. Still good — they may just need to provide more paperwork before we onboard them.
Rule of thumb: Green = ready. Yellow = promising, verify more.
What the symbols mean (columns I–U + AC)
The certificate is clearly shown on their site (named, numbered, or a downloadable document). Trustworthy.
They mention it (e.g. "EU compliant") but show no proof. Ask them for the actual certificate.
Not mentioned on their site. Treat as: they don't have it (or didn't publish it). Worth asking.
This certificate doesn't apply to this product type (e.g. GC-MS for a lipstick). Ignore it.
🔎 Section 2 — How to find your first supplier
Follow these 5 steps in order. The file is already sorted to make this easy.
⚖️ Section 3 — How to compare shortlisted suppliers
Once you have 2–3 candidates, line them up side by side and judge them on the same points.
Side-by-side comparison framework
Copy these rows into a scratch sheet and fill one column per candidate. Decide using the same criteria for each:
| Compare on… | Supplier A | Supplier B | Supplier C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tier (V) | — | — | — |
| Cert Score (AD) | — | — | — |
| CPSR (I) | — | — | — |
| ISO 22716 / GMP (J) | — | — | — |
| COA + SDS (K, M) | — | — | — |
| OEM/ODM (G) | — | — | — |
| MOQ (H) | — | — | — |
| Pricing (AC) | — | — | — |
| Contact info (W–Z) | — | — | — |
The candidate with the higher Tier, higher Cert Score, and complete contact info is usually the stronger first choice.
✅ Questions to ask each supplier
- Can you share your CPSR / ISO 22716 certificate — with the number and issuing body?
- What is your MOQ (minimum order) and production lead time?
- Do you offer OEM / ODM — making products under our brand?
- Can you provide a COA and SDS for every batch?
- Do you have an EU Responsible Person or EU export experience?
- What's the price for a sample, and for a bulk order?
- Can you send copies of any test reports (stability, microbial, heavy metals)?
🚩 Red flags to watch for
- Only vague "EU compliant" claims (⚠️) — no certificate numbers or documents.
- No real website of their own — only marketplace or social pages.
- Refuses or dodges sharing certificate copies.
- Cert Score of 0–1 — very little documented.
- No contact info at all (no email, form, or phone).
- Pushes you to pay before sharing any paperwork.
- Certificate names a different company than the supplier.
📜 Section 4 — Certification quick reference
Plain-language explainer for each certificate. Tap a row to expand: what it is, why it matters, and what it means if a supplier doesn't have it.
⚙️ Mandatory / Optional — your team's view
🤖 Section 5 — AI prompt templates
Copy-paste these into your AI assistant. Replace the [BRACKETS] with real details. Ready to use on day one.
💬 Section 7 — TypingMind tips
TypingMind is the chat app we use to run AI prompts (Section 5). These tips save time and tokens. Menu names can vary slightly by version — look for the nearest equivalent.
Resume an interrupted conversation
- Every chat is saved automatically in the left sidebar (chat history). Click a previous chat to reopen it exactly where you left off.
- If a generation stopped midway, the partial answer stays in the chat — you don't lose it.
- To carry on, click into the chat and either press Continue (see below) or type your next message; the model keeps the full conversation as context.
- If you sync your account, history is available on any device you log into.
Export a clean HTML / report
- Open the chat menu (the ⋯ / share icon on a message or the whole chat) → Export.
- Choose Markdown, PDF, or HTML. For a report we share, Markdown or PDF is cleanest.
- To grab just one answer, hover the message → Copy (copies the rendered text), then paste into a doc.
- Tables and headings carry over — ask the AI to "format as a clean report with headings and a table" before exporting for the best result.
Fix a cut-off generation
- If an answer stops mid-sentence it usually hit the Max Tokens limit.
- Press the Continue button (or type "continue") — the model resumes from exactly where it stopped, no need to repeat.
- For long reports, raise Max Tokens in the model settings (gear icon) before running.
- Very long single answers are better split: ask for it section by section.
Avoid wasting tokens (use Continue, not Regenerate)
Why it matters: tokens cost money. Regenerating re-runs the whole prompt and pays for it again; continuing only pays for the new part.
- Answer cut off? Use Continue — NOT Regenerate. Continue appends; Regenerate re-bills the entire prompt.
- Only regenerate when you actually want a different answer, not just more of the same one.
- Keep system prompts short; trim pasted text to what's needed.
- Use a cheaper/faster model for drafts and rough research; switch to the strongest model only for the final pass.
- Start a new chat for a new topic — a huge old history is re-sent (and re-billed) with every message.
Run the same prompt across multiple models
- Use the model selector at the top of the chat to switch models; some TypingMind versions have a compare / multi-model mode that runs one prompt across several models side by side.
- No compare mode? Duplicate the chat (or copy the prompt into a new chat), switch the model, and run again — then compare the answers.
- Good for cross-checking a supplier or a certificate: if two different models agree, you can trust it more; if they differ, verify on the supplier's own site.
- Keep the wording identical across models so the comparison is fair.