McConnell Labs Acquires Attain Cosmetics, Rebrands As Modern Chemistry Labs Following Private Equity Sale

As part of the transformation, Elizabeth Morris, founder of Attain and a nail-focused content creator, is becoming CEO of Modern Chemistry Labs. Terms of the transactions weren’t disclosed, but Attain joins Light Elegance, which Morris estimates has historically generated about a third of the manufacturer’s sales, in its branded business. McConnell Labs was born out of Light Elegance, the professional nail brand founded in 1999 by husband-and-wife Jim and Lezlie McConnell, a polymer chemist and salon owner, respectively.

“The objective of the company is taking it from the founder story and growing it from there,” says Morris. “We are in major growth mode on the manufacturing side and the brand side, with Attain being a part of that. We have created a real powerhouse that is going to serve professionals, at-home users and people who did what I did [by launching a brand].”

She arrives at the top of the contract manufacturer with an unusual résumé for the job, spanning finance, salon ownership, beauty distribution, content creation and brand building. After spending roughly seven years in finance, including at Broadcom, she turned her hobby into a business when she quit her financial analyst job and opened nail salon Va-Va Varnish in 2012.

Company background

Morris introduced “The Nail Hub Podcast” two years later and subsequently turned The Nail Hub into a distribution business. She launched Attain in 2023 with allergy-conscious at-home gel products manufactured by McConnell. As she takes the CEO post at Modern Chemistry Labs, The Nail Hub’s distribution arm is being phased out, but Morris is continuing to produce content with an eye toward raising awareness of Modern Chemistry Labs, an atypically public strategy for an industry generally operating behind the scenes.

She has 232,000 subscribers on YouTube at the channel Liz Means Business , while The Nail Hub has 200,000 followers on Instagram and another 27,000 on Facebook.

“Having a face to a company that I do business with and knowing the people behind the business is really important to me as an individual and I want to be able to give other people that experience, too,” says Morris. “I think a lot of people when they get into leadership let go of what got them there and I know people still want to have access to me.”

Manufacturing capabilities

Housed in a nearly 30,000-square-foot facility in Redmond, Ore., Modern Chemistry Labs is among a small group of U.S. manufacturers specializing in UV-cured gel nail systems, a market that depends heavily on production in China and that Morris describes as becoming crowded and price competitive in the wake of the pandemic as e-commerce boomed and brands proliferated. At the same time, much of the sales momentum in nails has shifted toward press-ons, a category Modern Chemistry Labs participates in through products such as adhesives but doesn’t manufacture the tips itself.

Morris believes Modern Chemistry Labs’ competitive advantages lie in high-performance formulas, close relationships with clients and reliable execution. Throughout its history, it’s worked with hundreds of clients, but Morris puts the number currently at 20 to 50, ranging from small mom-and-pop businesses to enterprise clients. On its website, Modern Chemistry Labs says it has the capacity to launch a brand in 30 days, and its minimum order quantities (MOQs) can be as low as 250 to 1,000 units, increasing to 10,000-plus units for larger-volume clients.

“An important thing in the industry is to go back to intentional formulation versus choosing products for price point,” says Morris. “That wave of consumerism took hold after COVID, and people are starting to go full circle and be much more careful about what they buy and why they buy it.”

Business strategy

Modern Chemistry Labs is zeroing in on mid-sized and growing indie beauty brands seeking custom formulation and flexible domestic production, aiming to occupy the space between lower-cost overseas suppliers and high-volume manufacturers. Morris points to skincare in particular as a growth vehicle, and Attain is set to extend into the category. Outside of light-cured gel systems, Modern Chemistry Labs can make everything from cuticle oils and peptide strengtheners to barrier creams, peptide serums and hand creams.

Impact Equity Partners was co-founded by Rich Jarvis, president of real estate investment firm Epic Capital Funds, and Jason Morris, an investor and operator with experience acquiring and scaling businesses. McConnell Labs was its first acquisition. The firm targets companies generating $750,000 to $3 million-plus in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), with at least 10 years of consistent positive cash flow, established market positioning and opportunities for expansion, efficiency or consolidation.

Pressured by slimmer margins as retailers trimmed assortments and higher costs pervaded the supply chain, beauty contract manufacturers have faced a challenging stretch. Dealmaking, however, appears to be picking up this year. Baird counted 28 supply-side beauty and wellness deals in the first half of 2026, up 87% year over year. Recent deals include River Associates’ acquisition of personal care contract manufacturer Diamond Wipes, Prime Matter Labs’ acquisition of color cosmetics manufacturer Mana Products and PharmaResearch’s acquisition of Cosmetic Group USA.