A COSMETICS company has more than doubled its workforce thanks to help from Teesside experts.

Geneve International has secured a list of blue chip clients for its body scrubs, moisturisers and other toiletries.

The company, based at Longbenton, North Tyneside, has increased its staff from 18 to 42 since late 2002 and plans to increase turnover from £1m to £5m in five years.

It has benefited from advice and support from the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI), at Wilton, near Redcar.

This was set up last year to promote North-East science and industry and is one of five centres of excellence established by One NorthEast.

Craig Spence, managing director of Geneve International, said: "Smaller companies like ourselves can be held back by limited knowledge of the resource and supply chain that's out there.

That's where CPI came in - they have an unsurpassed knowledge of the industry, an excellent network of contacts and have opened everything up for us.

"We have secured some big contracts following the assistance provided by CPI. Without them, we would not have been able to achieve such a rapid expansion.

"It's meant we can now take Geneve International to the next level, look at new market areas and take on more staff."

ChemiNet, a confidential brokerage service which is part of CPI, helped the company source vital equipment to increase their capacity from small batches to larger-scale production.

Peter Chandler, small and medium enterprise (SME) business unit manager at CPI, said: "Our work with Geneve International is a prime example of how we can help companies in different ways, from marketing and IT, sourcing the best machinery, materials and equipment to helping with their business plan.

"We provide advice but also have an extensive database of companies and organisations within the industry to draw on."

The unit has so far helped 54 SMEs in the region.