DOUGLAS Group selects Centric PLM to centralize product data, improve supplier collaboration and tighten regulatory control

# What happened DOUGLAS Group, the Europe-focused omnichannel premium beauty retailer, has selected Centric PLM to modernize and scale product development across its Corporate Brands business. The program targets centralizing product data, standardizing approvals and improving regulatory governance and supplier collaboration.

# Why DOUGLAS made the change Corporate Brands grew in scale and complexity, and product information, approvals and documentation were spread across multiple processes. That fragmentation made visibility, traceability and standardization difficult to maintain. Increasing regulatory requirements and supplier collaboration challenges created urgency for a structured, centralized approach.

Lena Krömer, SVP Corporate Brands at DOUGLAS Group, explained the business need: "Our priority was to find a scalable PLM platform that could centralize product information, strengthen regulatory compliance and establish a foundation for future growth while transforming fragmented processes into a connected and collaborative product development ecosystem." The selection followed an evaluation of several solutions.

# Why Centric PLM was chosen DOUGLAS selected Centric PLM for several named strengths:

• Deep functional experience in cosmetics and personal care.
• Corporate Brands capabilities and configurable platform design.
• Built-in Product Information File (PIF) features and regulatory compliance workflows.
• Supplier collaboration and end-to-end traceability in a single platform.

Centric positions its PLM as an end-to-end product lifecycle management solution that supports planning, development, formulation, sourcing, compliance and commercialization for categories including cosmetics and personal care.

# Implementation partner and expected outcomes valantic was selected as the implementation partner to lead deployment and process streamlining. DOUGLAS expects the Centric PLM deployment to deliver:

• Faster time to market for Corporate Brands products.
• Stronger supplier relationships through improved collaboration and shared data.
• Better visibility across innovation workflows and approvals.
• Enhanced compliance and regulatory governance via centralized product information.

Fabrice Canonge, CEO at Centric Software, framed the solution as providing the foundation to "streamline product development, strengthen compliance and accelerate Corporate Brands innovation." Centric also highlights its regulatory management capabilities as differentiators for the project.

# Who this affects The rollout directly affects DOUGLAS Group's Corporate Brands teams, internal development workflows, external suppliers and regulatory stakeholders who interact with product data and approvals. The change also supports the Group's omnichannel operations across online platforms and roughly 1,970 stores in 22 countries by creating a single source of truth for product information.

# Practical implications for competitors and suppliers Suppliers working with DOUGLAS should expect more structured data exchange, clearer approval workflows and a requirement to align with the PLM's collaboration processes. Competitors and other retailers can watch for improvements in DOUGLAS's speed to market and product governance as indicators of PLM impact in premium beauty retail.

# Bottom line DOUGLAS Group is consolidating fragmented product development and compliance activity into Centric PLM, implemented with valantic, to gain visibility, regulatory control and operational scale for its Corporate Brands business. The stated aims are faster launches, better supplier collaboration and stronger compliance oversight.