StartupTalky

Tag: Ayurvedic Brands

  • Ayurveda at the Click of Your Smartphone: The Success Story of India Shoppe

    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by India Shoppe.

    Digitization and E-Commerce have transformed the traditional way of business. Online shoppers Online shopping sales across India amounted to around $67 billion in 2021. Online shoppers are increasing year by year. There were 189 million online shoppers in 2021 which is expected to reach 220 million in 2025. The shopping behavior of customers has played a crucial role in the development of ECommerce retail. India Shoppe is one such E-Commerce retail platform that provides all the products for household needs. Staying bootstrapped, India Shoppe’s revenue growth has reached INR 1300 Crores.

    Read to know about India Shoppe, its founders, products and brands under it, its business model, and the story of its growth.

    India Shoppe – Company Highlights

    Startup Name India Shoppe
    Headquarters Chennai
    Industry Ecommerce Retail
    Founder Rajesh Chandan
    Founded 2013
    Website indiashoppe.com

    India Shoppe – About
    India Shoppe – Founders and Team
    India Shoppe – The Idea and Startup Story
    India Shoppe – Vision
    India Shoppe – Products
    India Shoppe – Business Model and Revenue Model
    India Shoppe – Challenges Faced
    India Shoppe – Revenue Growth
    India Shoppe – Tools Used in the Company
    India Shoppe – Achievements & Recognitions
    India Shoppe – Future Plans

    India Shoppe – About

    India Shoppe is an Omni-channel retailing company, started in Aug’13 to provide Wellness & Nutrition, Personal Health-care, Skin-care, Oral-care, Hair-care and Home-care after identifying & understanding their customers. They design & produce the products for which enough demand is created through various social media & other channels of Marketing. Recently, they have added fresh Agro-care solutions to their bouquet of products.

    India Shoppe – Founders and Team

    Rajesh Chandan is the founder of India Shoppe. Mitesh Bhandari and Viresh Mehta are the Co-Founders of India Shoppe.

    Rajesh Chandan - Founder of India Shoppe
    Rajesh Chandan – Founder of India Shoppe

    Mr Rajesh Chandan is an alumnus of Harvard Business School and a first-generation entrepreneur from Chennai and a technology enthusiast, with over two decades of hardcore exposure in various business verticals. He upgraded himself to the latest trends in business & technology, by attending various programs at ISB (Hyderabad) & IIM, (Ahmedabad). Rajesh Chandan actively conducts leadership workshops for Start-Ups, mentoring them to upscale their business. He held the position of VICE CHAIRMAN at JITO INTERNATIONAL W ING and continues as an active member of the JAIN INTERNATIONAL TRADE ORGANISATION with more than 15000+ influential (Jains as) members. Rajesh is an avid social worker associated with various organizations & rehabilitation centres. His family has donated a day-care hospital in Ayanavaram (Chennai) which is run by RYA Cosmo Foundation.

    India Shoppe Team
    India Shoppe Team

    Mitesh Bhandari is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of India Shoppe.

    Mitesh Bhandari is a young & dynamic commerce graduate from LOYOLA (Chennai) & MBA from NMIMS (Mumbai). He is a certified Chartered Financial Analyst with a decade of experience in several lines of business & off- late prominently in the Fin. Tech landscape. Mitesh Bhandari is an active investor on many alternative investment platforms, including Venture-Debt. He has more than 2 decades of experience in the business of Ferrous & Non-ferrous metals. Mitesh Bhandari also has a well-curated portfolio of leasing, and real estate assets.

    He serves as the Charter President of RCC Magnum, an organization of 100+ youth members & has been an active member of Round-Table (India), a philanthropic organization.

    Viresh Mehta is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of India Shoppe.

    Viresh Mehta is an enthusiastic leader who heads Business-Development. He is a marketing & sales specialist who focuses on the smooth functioning of an organizational supply chain and related value addition processes for the company. He has an outstanding experience of 17 years in merchandising & sourcing various consumer goods. He developed various distribution channels across India, for different FMCG Products, ensuring business growth. His strong decision-making abilities have played a critical role in handling and strategic planning of the product launches of several esteemed brands like Coorg Filter Coffee in Tamil Nadu, Detergents like Shudh, Rakshak and Samundar crystal salt from the house of industrial-giant, Tata. Understanding and engaging in public relations is a primary reason for his success. Crisis and Disaster Management at various business houses is his forte.

    Once Viresh Mehta organized a Dandiya Mela or a traditional folk-dance festival with over ten thousand participants from all ages & ethnicities, for raising student scholarships for the underprivileged.

    India Shoppe – The Idea and Startup Story

    Rajesh Chandan always wanted to start a brand, which would be more than just a business-house or a commercial- entity. He wanted it to be a part of people’s lives. That ‘want’ remained a distant dream until 2013, when he identified a dearth in a specific segment of the market & eventually, the spark grew into a flame.

    After a series of brainstorming with his peers in business, about how the global giants were becoming market leaders, online & native brands were ruling on-ground with their branches & franchises, the market in Omni-channel retailing remained unexplored. Soon, the idea started taking shape.

    India Shoppe was designed to be a lifestyle brand with a sincere focus on Tier II, and Tier III cities & towns targeting the “middle” & “upper-middle” income groups or the ‘active’ segment of society that is always aspiring for a better lifestyle.

    Rajesh went to the original ‘Shark-Tank’ to bounce his idea: My friends! Not for lack of options but this wasn’t just about, Validation of his idea but also the Sustenance of a promise!

    India Shoppe – Vision

    India Shoppe Logo

    India Shoppe has a vision to:

    • Be a large customer value creator in the market, focusing on customer service, understanding the customers, their way-of-life & identifying their requirements to improve their lifestyle.
    • Customize & develop products after market research & ensure they’re organic, healthy & easy to use.
    • Invest in new product lines & implement the latest technology to ensure they are delivered on time.

    India Shoppe – Products

    India Shoppe Products
    India Shoppe Products

    India Shoppe offers various daily-use products for individuals and the entire family. They are committed to building effective brand identity by aligning the consumers’ perception and expectations with the development of their products, with the highest standards in quality.

    India Shoppe has developed its private labels, under the brand names of:

    • “AAHAR” Food & Gourmet
    • “ELEMENTS WELLNESS” Health-Care
    • “NEUSTAR” Personal-Care
    • “ON & ON” Wellness & Nutritional-Care
    • “Mi HOME CARE” Adding a sparkle to your world
    • “INDIAGRO” Reflecting their commitment to farmers, they have scientifically researched and developed, plant & soil-care products that: help in maximizing the yield (for farmers) & are packed with nutrition (for consumers) while ensuring the quality of soil is retained.

    Their products do not contain (any) chemicals that are harmful to the body and are made of natural ingredients. They use raw materials which conform to API and in-house standards.

    Their proprietary health & wellness products are made of various nutritional ingredients & herbs, after extensive study and research. India Shoppe has experts who remain in close proximity with scientific researchers & market analysts to stay updated on developing new products or enhancing existing ones. Beginning from the sourcing of ingredients to the final Eco-conscious packaging, they ensure that their products are of premium quality.

    India Shoppe takes Conscious-Care for:

    • The People: Propose and promote a healthy lifestyle for consumers, with their products.
    • The Products: Prohibit the use of any ingredients which aren’t organic in their processes.
    • The Planet: From Products to Packaging, it is all vegetarian and eco-friendly.
    • The Past: Promoting Ayurvedic products which are preventive & also hail from this holy land.

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    India Shoppe – Business Model and Revenue Model

    India Shoppe creates a demand for its products, through active social-media campaigns and its chain of small-format retail stores & websites. Additionally, to reach a wider market, we’ve designed Pick-up Centers (P.U.C’s), in several remote locations that are mapped to their nearest store. Such P.U.C.s only purchase merchandise from the stores, they’re mapped to. It can also be explained as – H.O.: Parent, Store: Child, Store: Parent, PUC: Child.

    • Their stores maintain an online account of the respective PUCs mapped to them, based on the volumes of transactions or redemption of Pre-orders.
    • To ensure easy flow of the stocks, they are replenished from multiple warehouses, online & offline.
    • Their M.O.P is mostly through pre-orders having several types and denominations (Non-Transferable).
    • Customers carrying such Pre-orders get the merchandise at a discounted price while other customers purchase at M.R.P.
    • Customers can redeem/ purchase with dual-validation (Code & OTP) at the Store, PUC and Web-portal.
    • Their product range is further classified under different sub-categories.

    Strengths:

    • They have well-established network of 16 Warehouses, 51 Stores & 649 P.U.C’s, spread across the country,
    • They have tested & proven systems and ready-to-go processes for generating assured Sales growth.
    • They undertake periodic market research with corresponding Product-innovations.
    • They collaborate with scientific developers, manufacturers, designers, marketers & suppliers to ensure they come up with rich Ayurvedic products.
    • They build on brand re-call & consumer loyalty through Digital Marketing posts and campaigns by regularly posting engaging content on various social media platforms.
    • Their customers have been their biggest strength, as their testimonials are the hallmark of certification.

    India Shoppe – Challenges Faced

    Being an enterprise with most products based on Ayurveda, subscribing to their solutions would mean a shift into a better/healthier lifestyle. But this is the very reason most people today, resist choosing Ayurvedic medicine, which is more of preventive care, in contrast to the instant relief of western-medicine (Allopathy).

    However, the Covid Pandemic has rightfully pointed out that, instead of choosing the (so-called) ready remedies and instant reliefs, it is advisable to have a healthy lifestyle. And, going Ayurvedic, not only aids to eliminate the chances of infection but also has them equipped to battle other infections/ microbes, known & unknown.

    India Shoppe – Revenue Growth

    India Shoppe operates PAN-India. Starting in 2013-’14 from less than INR 100 CRS. to almost INR 1300 CRS. in 2021-’22. With a CAGR of 22%, their growth has continued during the Covid pandemic, even. So far, they are a bootstrapped company, running & managing with their capital & operating revenues.

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    India Shoppe – Tools Used in the Company

    Their team of developers, designers, researchers, product managers and engineers of various disciplines, work together in building a user-friendly design & well-tested interface with every aspect of the organization.

    • They have been using state-of-the-art ERP software for Finance and custom E-commerce.
    • The capacity of supply chain and logistics operations can be scaled anytime with their automated stock replenishment during peak periods (festivals/ holidays) for consistency in their deliveries.
    • With their in-house cloud-based mechanism and automation, Traffic is gracefully throttled if & when it goes beyond the given conditions.
    • Having high-performance integrations, connecting to third-party applications like the State GST portal, Supply chain Vendors and up to Last-mile deliveries.

    India Shoppe – Achievements & Recognitions

    India Shoppe has achieved recognition from the Government of India and others.

    • In the personal-care category, “Elements Wellness” was prestigiously awarded: BEST HEALTHCARE Brand by The Economic Times in 2019-‘20 & 2022-’23!
    • 7 & 14 State Governments in the country, have recognized India Shoppe as a prompt Tax-payer for 2020-2021 & 2021-2022 respectively.
    • At the peak of the Covid pandemic, when the health ministry of India advised everyone to take a spoon of Chavanprash (an Ayurvedic goo-ey preparation loaded with anti-oxidants & immunity boosters) a day, it hiked the consumption of their equivalent, On & On “Kavach Prash”.

    India Shoppe – Future Plans

    As a growing large-scale Value-Creator, they are eyeing expansion in the scale of operations, setting up more Distribution centres for easy reach & faster delivery, planning more stores & investing in new product lines & technology.

    After finding a firm footing in the local market, India Shoppe team have been exploring the possibility of expansion, especially in our neighbouring countries.

    FAQs

    When was India Shoppe founded?

    India Shoppe was founded in 2013 in Chennai.

    Who is the founder of India Shoppe?

    Rajesh Chandan is the founder of India Shoppe. Mitesh Bhandari and Viresh Mehta are the Co-Founders of India Shoppe.

    What are the products of India Shoppe?

    India Shoppe products list includes various daily household products:

    • Food Products
    • Health-Care Products
    • Personal-Care Products
    • Agro Care Products
    • Home Care Products

  • Cikitsa – Providing Beauty & Healthcare Products From Mother Nature

    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Cikitsa.

    In the past, the healthcare and beauty industry has been flexible, but the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted both sectors globally. The healthcare and beauty industry in India is expected to exhibit huge growth in the coming years. People are getting concerned about their health and beauty which makes them choose herbal and natural products over chemical products. The herbal product market is expected to grow at a CAGR 38.5% to Rs.14 billion (US$ 188.6 million) by 2026. Cikitsa has promised to bring well researched quality products to the world. They have aim to provide truthful beauty and healthcare products from Mother Nature.

    Read the startup story of Cikitsa, Founders, ideation, its products, and more about Cikitsa.

    Cikitsa – Company Highlights

    Startup Name Cikitsa
    Headquarters Cochin
    Industry Beauty and Healthcare
    Founders Fazal Rahman and Thamanna Jabin
    Founded 2020
    Website cikitsamart.com

    Cikitsa – About
    Cikitsa – Founders and Team
    Cikitsa – The Idea and Startup Story
    Cikitsa – Name, Tagline, and Logo
    Cikitsa – Products
    Cikitsa – Customer Acquisition
    Cikitsa – Challenges Faced
    Cikitsa – Advisors and Mentors
    Cikitsa – Future Plans

    Cikitsa – About

    Cikitsa is a Cochin based Beauty and Healthcare startup founded in 2020. They offer products inspired by ancient science of healing.

    At this time, their hero product is Cikitsa hair oil that caters to customers who are seeking to alleviate an array of hair issues while promoting hair growth. In addition to that, they have a selection of other nature-based products that cater to a wider audience.

    The company’s short-term goal is to ramp up their product from an eCommerce business to brick and mortar stores spanning across the state. In the next year or two, they are anticipating the launch of their product in some of the flagship stores across the country. With due time and continual growth, it won’t be long before Cikitsa hits the international markets.

    Their core beliefs guide them and help formulate their convictions, their values, and their code of ethics.

    They diligently spend time in bringing the best of nature to their customers in the most unaltered form- from soil to shelves. They are guided by the desire to provide 100% organic, natural, and efficacious products that address their customer’s concerns within a budget.

    Cikitsa – Founder and Team

    Cikitsa Founders - Fazal Rahman and Thamanna Jabin
    Cikitsa Founders – Fazal Rahman and Thamanna Jabin

    Cikitsa was founded by Fazal Rahman with his co-founder Thamanna in 2020, the very year they got married. Right from the inception to this date, her support and contributions to the making of the brand have been nothing short of irreplaceable. Her know-how of the cosmetic space with her passion for all things creative has helped us position themselves in a commendable way.

    Thamanna takes care of and heads the creative and marketing side of things, Fazal Rahman takes on the general operations and financial side of the business.

    Cikitsa – The Idea and Startup Story

    Enterprising, inventive, and extremely driven, Cikitsa’s founder and CEO, Fazal Rahman has always been unafraid when it comes to heading the path less travelled. That would explain why he wanted to venture into the relatively daring task of setting up his own business, despite enjoying comfortably mighty success in his family business. Thus, in many ways, Cikitsa was conceptualized by the founder’s towering entrepreneurial mindset.

    That, coupled with his drive to create a natural, sustainable, and eco-friendly brand that fostered conscious living, Cikitsa was quick to peek through. When he shared the business idea with his immediate family and close friends, the love, support, and encouragement sure gave him the extra nudge to follow through with the plan. To set the wheel in motion, he was quick to identify the prizable and yet often untapped potential of amalgamating Ayurveda into cosmetic products. Thus began extensive research to identify the needs and pain points of their target market. To ensure maximum quality and stringent safety regulations, he sought expert opinion each step of the way.

    Time, energy, and money were invested in formulating, manufacturing, and designing the product to perfection. From sourcing the raw materials right through packaging, binding standards are ensured to provide the best quality products that tackle customers’ pain points without burning a hole in their pocket.

    Cikitsa Logo
    Cikitsa Logo

    When setting up the brand, they were dead set on choosing a name that best represented the intent and purpose of the brand. Because of that, they were bound and determined to steer clear of any and every westernized name.

    Cikitsa was ideated from the Sanskrit word ‘Chikitsa’ which loosely translates to salving therapy or resurrective healing. Considering that it was much in line with their brand and ethos, they didn’t have to think twice and wound up using it without second thoughts.

    Cikitsa – Products

    Cikitsa Hair Oil
    Cikitsa Hair Oil

    At present, their hero product is none other than Cikitsa hair oil. In making this product viable they have fortified pioneering research, ingenious formulas, and synergetic herbs to alleviate irksome hair issues such as dandruff, dryness, lice, postpartum hair loss, etc, and in the course of time, promote hair growth.

    Right from sourcing raw materials through packaging, they take care to stand by their pledge to offer products that are as close to nature in non-prescription formulas. They provide safe, thoroughly researched solutions with no side effects.

    Over time, they have made tweaks to their product, in terms of making the product more eco-friendly and sustainable.

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    Cikitsa – Customer Acquisition

    As soon as the product was ready to be sold, they reflexively sprang into action and started promoting it on their Social networks. They reached out to their network, both personal and professional, to get the word out about their launches. While the first few purchases came from friends and family, the word fast caught on and they ended up seeing good traction without any paid marketing.

    Thus, by simply leveraging their online presence and harnessing the power of word-of-mouth marketing, they were able to expand their reach and expand their customer base quickly.

    By being hell-bent on tracking and analyzing customer behavior and metrics, they were able to continually make progress. They kept an open mind while listening to their customers’ feedback and were quick to act on their key concerns and suggestions. Not only did this help us in retaining existing customers via repeat purchases, but also furthered positive reinforcements around their product, and attracted new customers.

    They were also quick to create an attractive and functional website to bolster their customer experience further. Launching its website helped us streamline the purchase process, and made placing an order with us a lot more convenient and hassle-free. That, along with implementing good SEO practices and regularly optimizing their web pages for search, they were able to drive a lot more traffic and in turn, more customers.

    Cikitsa – Challenges Faced

    While setting up my business, we, as a team, had to tackle several roadblocks to get where they are today. While most of them were anticipated hiccups, their journey was not without major challenges.

    One of the trying issues was procuring licenses for their products. While getting all the required paperwork for a business is often always tedious and time-consuming, it took us quite a while to wrap up the documentation towards legal compliance. But by being proactive and consistent in their approach, they were able to speed up the process and make things happen.

    Another taxing challenge came in the time of the pandemic when their day-to-day operations were largely disrupted and they were forced to slow down. Nevertheless, their timely interventions and re-direction helped accelerate their recovery.

    Cikitsa – Advisors and Mentors

    When Cikitsa was in its early inception stages, the brand very much benefited from the mentorship and guidance of the directors of my family business. Seasoned professionals and experts in their own lane, they sure helped me navigate the business in the right direction. Even to this date, their timely inputs and pointers continue to steer this business to greater heights. It would also be worthwhile to mention the invaluable feedback and suggestions from my family who are weathered and accomplished business veterans themselves.

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    Cikitsa – Future Plans

    All things considered, the future sure looks bright for Cikitsa. From newer and better additions that customers love, we’re committed to building a brand that’s synonymous with the good old glory of nature.

    In the next few years, they see themselves diversifying their product portfolio and launching thoroughly researched & effectively formulated products to the market. With due time and steady progress, they definitely are going international to cater to a larger customer base across the globe.

    FAQs

    Who is the founder of Cikitsa?

    Fazal Rahman and Thamanna Jabin are the founders of Cikitsa.

    When was Cikitsa founded?

    Cikitsa was founded in 2020 in Cochin.

    What are the products offered by Cikitsa?

    Some of the products offered by Cikitsa are:

    • Cikitsa hair oil
    • Bamboo Tooth Brush
    • Almond Oil
    • Honey
    • Wooden Comb
    • Wooden Razor

  • Auric: 100% Natural Ayurvedic Drinks for Millennials!

    Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Auric.

    Auric is a Direct to Consumer (D2C) brand that is creating innovative and convenient lifestyle products by blending Ayurveda with the benefits of modern sciences. Deepak Agarwal founded Auric to bring Ayurveda closer to Millennials! The USP of Auric’s beverages lies in formulation – No preservatives, No added sugar, 100% natural & low calories.

    StartupTalky interviewed Mr. Deepak Agarwal (Founder, Auric) to get insights into the startup story and roadmap of the organization. Let’s discover more about Auric in this article –

    Auric – Company Highlights

    Startup Name Auric
    Founder Deepak Agarwal
    Headquarters New Delhi
    Founded 2018
    Industry D2C Ayurveda
    Website theauric.com

    Auric – About and Vision
    Auric – Market/Industry Details
    Auric – Founder
    Auric – Startup Story
    Auric – Idea & Inspiration
    Auric – Products Offered
    Auric – Ideology behind Name & Logo
    Auric – Business Model
    Auric – Revenue Model
    Auric – Marketing Strategies
    Auric – Growth
    Auric – Funding and Investors
    Auric – Tools used to run startup
    Auric – Recognition/Achievements
    Auric – Future Plans

    Auric – About and Vision

    Auric is essentially a novel and aspirational Direct To Consumer (D2C) brand creating innovative and convenient lifestyle products by blending Ayurveda with the benefits of modern sciences. It aims to break the lucrative $5 billion worth Ayurveda & Supplements industry by championing a scintillating array of world-class consumer products.

    Auric operates in the mass-premium segment at the crossroads of Consumer Goods & Supplements. It has a unique range of Ayurveda-inspired, Coconut-water based drinks for Beauty & Wellness drinks for healthy skin, Balanced Weight & Stronger Hair being some of the examples. The company has also launched Ayurveda-based Hot Beverages such as – Moringa Masala Tea, Turmeric Coffee & Ashwagandha Hot Chocolate.

    The long-term vision of Auric is to bring Ayurveda closer to Millennials – products. If Millennials prefer Turmeric Latte over Haldi Doodh then Auric is former than later. Auric wants to become part of the daily lifestyle of Millennials.

    Auric – Market/Industry Details

    There are broadly three themes where Auric is trying to own space –

    a) Premiumisation: Aspirational shift from Haldi Doodh to Turmeric Latte

    b) Convenience: From Ready-to-Make To Ready-to-Drink (Aloe Amla Juice vs Aloe Amla Drink)

    c) Newness: Same Benefits, Different Formats (Glowing Skin Drink and Glowing Skin Tablet)

    Globally, Ayurveda is a $5Bn market while Yoga is a $100B economy. Ayurveda essentially needs to address this gap through various form factors including beverages. Foods & Beverages as an industry is moving towards nutraceuticals through fortification and Ayurveda due to its credibility is turning out to be a driver of that fortification.

    Ayurveda is an Ancient Wisdom and the wisdom has been carried over generations in multiple shapes & forms. Let’s look at beverages, for example, the Ayurvedic Beverages market is going to be an intersection of the $10B beverages market and $1B nutraceuticals market.

    At-home rituals such as Lemon water or Concentrates like Apple Cider Vinegar or Traditional choices such as Kadak Masala Tea & Buttermilk are rooted in ancient wisdom. The non-alcoholic drinking occasions market is replete with examples in packaged/branded and unpackaged/unbranded categories. Amla Juice is an example of the former while Haldi doodh is an example of the latter. As health and wellness rise, Ayurveda will find relevance in every drinking occasion of the multi-billion dollar beverage market.

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    Auric – Founder

    Deepak Agarwal is the Founder & the CEO of the company Auric.

    Deepak Agarwal

    Deepak Agarwal is the Founder & CEO of the company. He is a Fitness & Food enthusiast. The founder of Auric is quite passionate about the consumer brands of India! At Hindustan Unilever Ltd, he began his career as a summer intern and then joined the company as a Business Leadership Trainee. With every passing day, he got a higher position in the company. Currently, he is the founder & CEO of Auric. He is a graduate from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi. Deepak completed his schooling from Apeejay School.

    Deepak Agarwal, Founder & CEO, Auric

    Auric – Startup Story

    Deepak always dreamed of starting his own startup! After almost 10 long years in a corporate sector, he realized and founded his own Ayurveda drinks focussed startup. Since he belonged to a family of businessmen and chartered accountants, he too wanted to go in the same field. But from his college days, he was unable to find out in which sector he should start his business. For a long period of time, he was trying to find out the answer to his question and one fine day he got the answer from himself.

    He used to be a sportsperson during his school days. But, unfortunately, he met with an accident during a football game which was conducted in his college. Deepak was the goalkeeper and during the game, a striker struck his knee which resulted in a number of fractures and so on. After this, he was totally off sports! This led him to ayurveda and he found his answer to the question. Soon after his corporate life ended, he started off with his new business idea.

    Auric – Idea & Inspiration

    A backbone fracture in University-led Deepak Agarwal, the Founder of Auric, to Yoga after Physiotherapy did not work for him. Yoga made Deepak a strong advocate of Ancient Wisdom which led him on the path to learn & experiment with Ayurveda.

    Auric Founder
    Deepak Agarwal – Founder of Auric

    While convincing friends and family to adopt Ayurveda, he observed reasons of Millennials to not consume Ayurveda – poor sensorial, a little trust, or absence of aspiration. Since Millennials are going to carry the flag of Ayurveda in the future, Deepak decided to Build Auric – Ayurveda for Millennials. Wellness, Natural Living, and Going back to Roots are some of the strong drivers for Ayurveda to become a daily lifestyle for India going forward. Auric is at the helm of the same.

    “We did our own little research starting with Herbal Juices. We found that almost every single Amla Juice & Aloe Vera Juice selling in the market was Junk” – says Deepak.

    Millennials believe in Clean labels and 100% Natural Nutrition. “If you cannot feed the same products to your children, you may not as well sell to others”, should be the wisdom of FMCG entrepreneurs. Also, most Ayurvedic products in the market do not mention basic details on calories, sugar, the fiber in the form of a nutrition table on the back of the pack. How else will we count the calories & sugar intake?

    Auric – Products Offered

    Coconut Water-based Ayurvedic Drinks and Ayurveda-inspired Hot Beverages are the product lines of Auric. Its highest selling products include Drinks for Glowing Skin & Sexual Wellness and Moringa Masala Tea.

    The Auric beverages are made keeping in mind the traditional formulations from Charaka Samhita as well as recommended Daily Intake as prescribed by Ayurveda Pharmacopeia of India. Each bottle of Auric contains 25% of recommended daily intake of essential herbs for wellness and beauty.

    Auric
    Auric Products

    The best part is, they do not add any preservatives or chemicals. Auric drinks are 100% natural, made with premium herbs, tender coconut water, and refreshing fruit juice – to deliver the benefits of Ayurveda with the convenience of a beverage. Auric doesn’t allow any junk in its products. The team has distilled the goodness of 5 Ayurvedic herbs in each bottle of Auric and mixed it with coconut water.

    Auric is a purpose-led brand with Ayurveda for Millennials. The purpose is to help make better choices for a better lifestyle whether it is Better Skin or Better Sexual Wellness or Better Tea for example. On other hand, a Millennial Ayurveda brand should make Ayurveda part of Millennial pop culture i.e. making Ayurveda trendy, relatable, and part of the lifestyle.

    Auric (Awe-rik) is Inspired by the words Aura and Aurora that describe the mystical beauty of nature & its divinity.

    Auric
    Auric Logo

    The name Auric also hints at the chemical name of Gold in Latin. It depicts the ‘trivalent form’ of Gold (meaning formed of 3 atoms) – depicting Body, Mind & Soul. The attributes of Gold further go on to inspire the personality of the three variants – Skin Radiance, Body Defence, and Mind Rejuvenation. On repetition, ‘Auric’ sounds like ‘Aur Ek’ which colloquially means “one more”, mentally conditioning the patrons to get another one.

    The Logo Symbol represents an artistic version of the Celtic Symbol of the ‘Tree of Life’. Being nature-inspired, Auric strongly communicates Ayurvedic Science and many facets of it. Smart internal divisions create 5 leaf-like forms symbolizing 5 human senses. The interplay of the positive and negative space produces a life-like form sitting in a meditative posture while subtly creating the likeliness of a lotus. The custom-created Typeface has curved terminals and sharp edges denoting the Brand Personality to be bold & edgy, yet friendly & empathetic.

    The typography is inspired by nature, which is subtly cued by the leaf-like terminals of the letters. The color of the Symbol is derived from the Brand Name and is thus an amalgamation of multiple shades of Gold. The Golden Symbol and the Black Wordmark complement each other well, as they are in perfect contrast; giving each other adequate visual space, whilst also navigating attention. The Symbol and the Wordmark harmoniously create a strong Visual Identity of the brand – a modern spin to the ancient art of Ayurveda.

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    Auric – Business Model

    Millennials today discover new brands online and hence, Auric is a 100% D2C online brand available pan India. Auric is essentially a novel and aspirational Direct To Consumer (D2C) brand creating innovative and convenient lifestyle products by blending Ayurveda with the benefits of modern sciences.

    Auric operates in the mass-premium segment at the crossroads of Consumer Goods & Supplements. It has a unique range of Ayurveda-inspired, Coconut-water based drinks for Beauty & Wellness drinks for healthy skin, Balanced Weight & Stronger Hair being some of the examples.

    Auric – Revenue Model

    The revenue model of Auric is quite simple! Auric offers exotic discounts to its consumers almost everyday. Initially, there was an introductory offer which was only available for the first thousand consumers. Customers got free delivery all across the country. Auric till now tries to introduce different offers to its users because this benefits the company a lot. The company also provides a 10% discount on every drink purchased. Lifetime membership plan is also available at only Rs 500/- which is quite reasonable and after availing this, the users get a discount of 53% for the rest of the life.

    Auric – Marketing Strategies

    Auric’s marketing strategy is well balanced across all three funnels – Top, Middle, and Bottom. Creating content in collaboration with social media influencers helps at the top while Facebook/Google helps at the bottom. A strong community of 120,000 Instagram followers does the job in the middle. Retention is a less talked about marketing plan but it is often a key element for the longevity of a brand.

    Auric has worked out its email marketing strategy with Klaviyo and also, developed proprietary conversation technology to enable WhatsApp convenience for existing customers

    Auric Marketing Strategies
    Auric Marketing Funnel

    The most successful marketing campaign has been Memes – A little cheeky & a little below the belt but On point Messaging with Humour.

    Auric Marketing Strategy
    Auric’s Meme Marketing

    Also Read: The Meme Era: How Meme Marketing Is Becoming The New Way To Brand Success?

    Auric – Growth

    Auric is doing over 25,000 orders every month fully online in India. The startup has strong retention and NPS. Here is how Auric’s website users have grown in the last 3 years –

    Auric Growth
    Growth of Auric’s Website Users

    Auric – Funding and Investors

    Date Stage Amount Investors
    June Quarter Pre-series A USD 2Mn Cactus Venture Partners, Venture Catalysts, 9Unicorns

    Also read: Indian Startups – Funding & Investors Data [Exclusive 2021]

    Auric – Tools used to run startup

    Auric uses Google Analytics, Microsoft Excel, Whatsapp, and Facebook Analytics. It started on the Wix platform and has transitioned to Shopify in November 2021.

    Auric – Recognition/Achievements

    Auric was recently featured in the hottest 30 D2C startups in Inc42 Plus ’30 Startups to Watch.

    Auric – Future Plans

    Auric’s vision is to make Better Life for Millennials with Ayurveda. On the brand side, Auric will use the power of content-community-commerce to become part of the attention and conversation of millennials. On the product side, Auric will bring Ayurveda Wellness in foods you eat as well as personal products you apply

    Auric – FAQs

    What is Auric?

    Auric is a Direct to Consumer (D2C) brand that is creating innovative and convenient lifestyle products by blending Ayurveda with the benefits of modern sciences.

    Who founded Auric?

    Deepak Agarwal is the founder of Auric.

    Is Auric an Indian brand?

    Yes. Auric is an Indian startup headquartered in New Delhi.

    How does Auric make money?

    Auric is an online D2C ayurveda brand. It earns money by selling a variety of products like Coconut Water-based Ayurvedic Drinks, Ayurveda-inspired Hot Beverages, and more.

  • Patanjali Interesting Facts | Unknown Facts Behind the Popularity of Patanjali

    In India, ayurvedic goods have dominated the whole medical and cosmetic sector. Patanjali’s development in the field of ayurvedic medications and goods is well-known throughout India. With a net income of Rs. 590 crores ($80 million), Patanjali has been recognised as India’s fastest-growing FMGC company. It was founded in 2006 by Yoga master Baba Ramdev and Ayurveda professor Acharya Balkrishna. Patanjali Ayurved Limited is the owner of the Patanjali trademark. Its headquarters are in Haridwar, Uttarakhand.

    Patanjali serves the personal care and food sectors. It manufactures over 300 Ayurvedic medications for the treatment of various bodily problems and generates over 2,500 goods.

    So, without further ado, let’s look at some unknown facts about Patanjali.

    How Patanjali started?
    Patanjali’s Revenue Over the Years
    Baba Ramdev is not a Stakeholder
    How Does Patanjali Sell its Products?
    Patanjali’s Best Selling Products
    What Percentage of Patanjali’s Income is Spent on Advertising and Publicity?
    Patanjali’s Business Strategy
    How did Patanjali become so popular?
    Patanjali has a Food Park of its own
    Patanjali’s Divya Amla Juice and Shivlingi Beej Controversy
    Conclusion
    FAQs

    How Patanjali started?

    Acharya Balkrishna | Patanjali Founder and Chairman
    Acharya Balkrishna | Patanjali Founder and Chairman

    In Haridwar, Acharya Balkrishna and Ramdev established Divya Yoga Pharmacy in 1995, which led to the establishment of Patanjali Ayurved. NRIs Sunita and Sarwan Poddar, who are Ramdev’s followers, helped the firm get off the ground with a loan.

    Balkrishna said that he took out a Rs 60 crore loan without ever having a personal bank account in his name.

    Patanjali’s Revenue Over the Years

    In 2012, Patanjali made a total revenue of Rs 452 crores ($6.07 million), in 2013, it went up to Rs 849 crores ($11.4 million). In 2014, the revenue was Rs 1191 crores ($16 million) and in 2015, it went to Rs 2006 crores ($26.9 million). In May 2017, the firm said that its revenues had quadrupled in a year to over Rs 10,000 crore and in 2020 generated Rs 30,000 crores, making it India’s second-largest consumer products company, second only to Hindustan Unilever who they aim to beat by next year, with Amul now contending for second place.

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    Baba Ramdev is not a Stakeholder

    The firm does not consider Baba Ramdev to be a shareholder. The yoga guru owns zero% stake in the business. Acharya Balkrishna, on the other hand, is the managing director of Patanjali Ayurved and has a 94 per cent share in the company.

    How Does Patanjali Sell its Products?

    Patanjali goods are offered through three types of medical centres: 1200 Patanjali Chikitsalayas (doctors’ clinics), 2500 Arogya Kendra (health and wellness centres), and 8000 Swadeshi Kendra (non-medicine outlets).

    Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali established a collaboration with eight e-tailers earlier this year as part of a big push for the online distribution of Patanjali Ayurveda’s products.

    Several E-tailers have partnered with Patanjali Ayurveda. These are:

    These e-tailer collaborations will be in addition to the company’s website, patanjaliayurved.net, where it sells its goods online.

    Patanjali’s Best Selling Products

    Patanjali Best selling products
    Patanjali Best selling products
    • Patanjali’s cow ghee has brought in Rs 1,467 crore, accounting for 13.9 per cent of the company’s overall income.
    • Patanjali Ayurveda’s second most popular product, Dant Kanti toothpaste, has brought in the most money after cow’s ghee. According to the most recent information available, Patanjali’s Dant Kanti sold Rs 940 crore, accounting for 8.9% of total income.
    • The hair cleanser, Kesh Kanti, is another of Patanjali Ayurveda’s most popular products. Kesh Kanti, Patanjali’s haircare brand, had a revenue of Rs 825 crore, accounting for 7.8% of the company’s overall sales.
    Patanjali Best products

    What Percentage of Patanjali’s Income is Spent on Advertising and Publicity?

    Patanjali invests 12-20% of its sales on distribution and research, according to data and sources. Patanjali has developed a unique word-of-mouth marketing strategy that generates all revenue without the use of advertising.

    Patanjali’s fame did not emerge immediately; it grew over time as hundreds of thousands of pleased consumers multiplied into lakhs.

    Patanjali’s Business Strategy

    Patanjali Chikitshalya and Arogya Kendras have 10,000 locations where the staff constantly suggests Patanjali items. And the folks who attend their yoga camps are eager to promote the business. Baba Ramdev’s Swadeshi branding was added to the mix. Baba Ramdev also sells it on television and promotes it in his Yoga seminars around the country.

    They also supply Patanjali brand usage and teach and certify medical practitioners chosen by Ayurveda clinics.

    Due to the rub-off effect of Baba Ramdev’s qualifications in Yoga and Ayurveda, this instantly bestows confidence and credibility.

    How did Patanjali become so popular?

    Patanjali goods have grown in popularity in the recent year, even though the company was founded in 2006. The Haridwar-based firm brought in Rs 5,000 crore in revenue in 2015-16, up from about Rs 400 crore in 2011-12, Rs 2,000 crore in 2014-15, and now Rs 30,000 crores in 2020-21. In its FMCG range of roughly 300 goods, products like ghee and toothpaste have emerged as blockbusters, boosting their development even further.

    The trend in Indian customers’ lifestyles toward natural and ayurvedic items and the fact that its goods are 20 per cent cheaper than most FMCG items might be the reason for its success.

    Patanjali has a Food Park of its own

    Patanjali Food Park
    Patanjali Food Park

    Patanjali Ayurveda has it is own Patanjali Food and Herbal Park, which runs under the Indian government’s food park plan. Not only that but the corporation is said to have opened one of the world’s largest food parks, with a total investment of Rs 500 crores. It is not only beneficial to the medical brand, but it also employs over 6,500 people and spans 100 acres.

    Patanjali’s Divya Amla Juice and Shivlingi Beej Controversy

    In a public notification dated June 21, 2017, the Nepal Department of Drug Administration requested that Patanjali Ayurved recall six medicinal items because they were determined to be of poor quality.

    Patanjali’s Divya Amla Juice and Shivlingi Beej failed to fulfil quality criteria, according to an RTI request. According to the test result, Shivlingi Beej had 31.68 per cent foreign matter, and amla juice had a pH value below the permissible range. Between 2013 and 2016, 32 of the 82 samples collected failed the quality test.

    According to a lab study from the Uttarakhand state government, the pH value of amla juice was determined to be less than the permissible level, which assesses the alkalinity of water-soluble compounds. Acidity and other medical issues may result from products with pH levels less than seven. The lab result was refuted by Acharya Balkrishna, who said it was an effort to smear Patanjali’s reputation.

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    Conclusion

    The last financial year has been quite hard for Patanjali since sales were down due to the pandemic, but with the acquisition of the FMCG firm Ruchi Soya for Rs 4350 crores ($58.4 million), things have started to look up. Baba Ramdev has reported a 9 per cent rise in operational revenue while the net income has gone up to 14 per cent since 2020. Patanjali is expected to grow even more and beat its competition in the coming years.

    FAQs

    Who is the real owner of Patanjali?

    Acharya Balkrishna is the owner of Patanjali. He is the chairman of the consumer goods company Patanjali Ayurved.

    What is the USP of Patanjali?

    Patanjali sells only Ayurveda based products in food, cosmetics and healthy FMCG products.

    When was Patanjali started?

    Patanjali was founded in January 2006 by Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna at Haridwar.

  • Scaling Indian Organic & Ayurvedic brands – Challenges & Solution

    This article has been contributed by Ms. Pooja Nagdev, Aromatherapist, Cosmetologist and Founder of INATUR.

    Ayurveda, India’s oldest medicinal system, has survived multiple waves of evolution over the previous 5000 years. Ayurveda is poised to become one of the most innovative healthcare growth markets in the world. Despite tremendous expansion in the nascent Ayurveda business, the industry still faces hurdles that must be overcome.  The issue of formulating natural or organic cosmetics is ensuring stability, safety, and efficacy. On the other hand, there is no harmonization of the regulatory guidelines. Many natural ingredients can be found in cosmetics that have a biological function. In the market for cosmetic goods with a longer shelf life, the usage of plants and herbs is on the rise. As a result, uniform standards for organic cosmetics and the standardization of raw materials are required.

    The following are some of the industry’s biggest challenges:

    1. Standardization

    Validation of Ayurvedic concepts (using modern norms) will make Ayurveda more acceptable to society, allowing it to become a mainstream life science. Ayurveda is facing a dilemma in terms of branding and consistency, as well as a diverse range of big and small merchants at the regional and national levels. Standardization and quality control are required to bring Ayurveda to a global audience.

    2. Lack of awareness

    Ayurveda has a large business potential worldwide, but it has yet to be fully realized. There appears to be a mismatch between the rate of increase of demand for services and the rate of expansion of supply. The availability of high-quality pharmaceuticals and a lack of basic infrastructure are limiting Ayurveda’s growing potential. There is a pressing need to properly advertise Ayurvedic products. Additionally, there is a need to raise knowledge about ayurvedic products and services. As a result, establishing awareness of the differences between Ayurvedic, organic, and natural products and services is a problem for participants.

    Also Read: List of the Top Ayurvedic Brands in India | 2021 Updated

    3. Procurement of raw materials

    The procurement and development of raw materials must be improved to ensure that the quality and core methods of Ayurveda are not compromised. Pesticides, herbicides, and insecticides are frequently seen as easy measures to boost productivity, therefore farming techniques have radically departed from age-old traditional methods.

    4. Use of Technology

    In the present period of medical Ayurvedic practice, technology is playing a big part, and it’s opening a lot of doors for avoiding overtreatment. It has improved the speed with which diagnoses are made and the effectiveness of treatment techniques. The lack of or sluggish adoption of technology may be a difficulty for Ayurveda, but it may also be a strength: using technology, products and services can be made more widely available and accessible.

    Organic Cosmetics are often mixed with natural.  All Organic cosmetics and wellness products are Natural, but all Natural products are not Organic. Aloe Vera gel, cucumber extract, honey, lemon oil, and other natural ingredients that manufactured in an organic way, that is no chemical treatment is done to the natural plant in the process of extraction of the ingredient. are utilized in organic cosmetics. Organic cosmetics primarily consist of organic skincare products, hair care, lip care, eye care, organic soaps, perfumes, and oils.

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    Organic cosmetic products require strict quality control to ensure their efficacy and safety. Quality control refers to the procedures that are used to ensure that a manufactured product’s quality and validity are maintained. Microscopic examination, assessment of ash, heavy metals, foreign materials, and micro-biological contamination are all included in the evaluation of organic cosmetics.

    Organic cosmetics are superior to synthetic cosmetics in both cosmetic and therapeutic applications. Organic cosmetics are those that contain a variety of organic ingredients and extracts. Organic cosmetics are unique in that they are composed entirely of herbs and plants. Natural and Ayurvedic cosmetics are other terms sometimes used for Organic cosmetics.

    Natural beauty care products have been around since men first started using cosmetics. Creams, face packs, and scrubs, hair oils, hair colours, shampoos, hair conditioners, lipsticks, blush on, rouge, eyeliners, mascaras, foundations, eyeshadow, fragrances, scents, cleansers, and so on are some common beauty products. By using specific definition approaches, the detailing of all these restorative things integrates an expansion of distinct regular additional substances such as oils, waxes, natural hues, common smells, and plant parts such as leaves, blossoms, and so on.

    Consumers are increasingly looking for products that have a lower environmental impact. Cosmetics are now with more “environmentally friendly ingredients and packaging.” There are tests conducted to check the effectiveness and toxicology of raw material and packaging material tough the criteria and requirements to be met for items to be classified as natural or organic should be issued by regulatory authorities. These guidelines are intended to define the packaging processes that are permitted, as well as to suggest sustainable extraction and processing methods.