How Ayurvedic products are chasing luxury markets

The home page for the Paro by Good Earth’s website is a recitation of the Shanti Mantra.Om dyauh shanti rantarikshamshantihPrithvi shantirapahshantihOshadhayahshantihVanaspatayahshantihVishvedevaahshantih Brahma shantihSarvamshantihShantirevashantihSaamaashantiredhihOm shaantih, shaantih, shaantihAt the top right corner is an unnoticed little window that allows you to access the site. Paro is a luxury lifestyle Good Earth’s window into the world of Ayurveda. Using the principles of the Vedic civilisation, Paro aims to connect the body with the earth’s seasons or cosmic order. It may sound like mumbo jumbo, but each time I am in New Delhi I find myself trekking over the Chanakya mall to Paro’s only store in India (the site doesn’t offer e-commerce), fighting every agnostic bone in my body. I pick up essential oils and roll-on mogra perfumes, they are so good I have sworn off Jo Malone.Paro is one among scores, even hundreds, of Indian brands offering a mix of magic and science to cure all: from acne and aches to hair loss and stretch marks.In an interview with Businessoffashion.com, Forest Essential’s executive director Samrath Bedi says: “During the making of our cult favourite Ayurvedic Eternal Youth Formula Date & Litchi, specific mantras are chanted while the cream is mixed by hand, to lend positive vibrations to the product, which consequently energise the skin with positive energy.”Bedi is the son of founder Mira Kulkarni, who grew up in Rishikesh and was inspired to make soaps for her friends using cold-pressed pure oils. She started her business with an investment of Rs 2 lakh and now has over 60 stores across India, and Estee Lauder as a strategic investor. Two years ago, Spanish perfume company Puig, the makers of Paco Rabanne, invested Rs 100 crore in Kama Ayurveda. “It was opportune,” cofounder Vivek Sahni tells me, as it allowed Kama to develop its e-commerce as well as build more stores. “Kama has now had 60 standalone stores across India,” he adds.Ayurveda has existed in the Indian subcontinent for over 2,000 years. As an alternative medicine, the Indian Medical Association has doubts over its efficacy. But for lighter remedies like haircare, skincare and essential oils, users of Ayurveda are only growing.While companies such as Shahnaz Herbals and Biotique have been around for several years, others like Kama Ayurveda and Forest Essentials have taken ayurvedic products to the level of a luxury item. With international companies investing in Indian brands, it seems the world is suddenly interested in our ancient Indian practices and kitchen therapies.Both Kama and Forest Essentials are 20 years old. Interestingly, both started stocking at five-star hotels first before getting into retail. “People are not likely to change their beauty products easily, so we thought getting them to try our soaps in hotels would be a good idea,” Sahni says. “It worked.”Just a few weeks ago, model and television personality Malaika Arora announced she was investing in Kapiva, a direct-to-consumer Ayurvedic nutrition brand. Malaika is a fitness enthusiast and a yoga practitioner, and co-founder of Sarva Yoga. Her penchant for wellness has also seen her launch a food brand called Nude, or Nutritious Undisguised Delicious Eats. Kapiva, which has already raised over Rs 110 crore via investors such as Vertex ventures and Fireside, is the newest feather in the entrepreneurial cap. Amsterdam-based influencer and activist Diipa Khosla is also stepping into the skincare business with an interesting new brand called Inde Wild, that uses ‘Ayurvedistry’, or a mix of Ayurveda and chemistry.Fashion label Varana’s Sujata Keshavan is soon launching Almora Botanica. The luxury skincare brand is inspired by Ayurveda, headquartered in Bengaluru, will launch in London and hopes to sell to the EU and the USA.The international tilt towards ‘clean beauty’ is making the world knock on Indian Ayurveda’s doors. Clean beauty is quite simply using natural or herbal ingredients over harmful synthetic ones. The world’s propensity for mindfulness and a more organic way of life—also seen in sustainable fashion and our organic kitchens—has lent itself to its beauty regimes too.Despite its rising currency, there is much room for improvement with Ayurveda. There is still no regulatory body or a nationwide standard that monitors its purity and efficacy. Sahni says Kama has just started doing clinical trials for its best-sellers.This would especially clear the air that surrounds Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved, the company posted a Rs 9,872 crore revenue in 2020-2021, noting a minor 8.6 % increase in the previous financial year.Email: Namrata.zakaria@gmail.comTweets: @namratazakariaRead also: 87205200