Continuous chromatographic processes have gained a lot of attention due to the increasing use as a preparative separation step for life science products. The simulated moving bed (SMB) process is a well-known example. A new multicolumn continuous chromatographic process was recently introduced as the VARICOL process [Ludemann-Hombourger, O. et al. The "VARICOL" Process: A New Multicolumn Continuous Chromatographic Process. Sep. Sci. Technol. 2000, 35(12), 1829]. Although in SMB; chromatography a continuous operation is realized by periodic and simultaneous shifting of all inlet and outlet ports, VARICOL uses individual movements of the ports resulting in a more, efficient use of the expensive adsorbent. This paper presents a more general definition of the VARICOL process than given previously. For this flexible process description, an optimization strategy for determining optimal operating parameters is presented. Based on a detailed mathematical process model, optimal operating conditions are computed for two sepdration tasks: the separation of two amino acids, tryptophan and phenylalanine [Wu, D.-J. et al. Design of Simulated Moving Bed Chromatography for Amino Acid Separations. Ind. Eng. Chem.. Res. 1998, 3 7, 4023], with minimal desorbent consumption, and the separation of highly concentrated sugars, glucose and fructose [Jupke, A. et al. Experimental Verification of a Process Model, Simulation and Optimisation of SMB Chromatography. SPICA, 2000, 2000-10-11, Zurich], with maximum throughput. It is shown that a significant increase in profitability can be achieved by exploiting the flexibility of the VARICOL process by mathematical optimization of its operating parameters.