Counterfeiting is a growing threat across the FMCG, pharma, and automotive industries, and traditional safeguards are no longer enough. In this exclusive interaction with StartupTalky, Mr. Padmakumar Nair, Founder and CEO of Ennoventure, discusses how smart, tech-driven packaging is reshaping brand protection. He shares insights on invisible signatures, consumer behavior trends, and the role of AI in detecting anomalies. He also talks about market expansion strategies, data privacy, and the future impact of blockchain and quantum computing. Above all, he highlights how Ennoventure is creating a secure, connected ecosystem that goes beyond authentication to build consumer trust.
StartupTalky: With counterfeiting continuing to challenge industries like FMCG, pharma, and auto parts, how do you see the demand for smart, tech-driven brand protection evolving over the next few years?
The market has witnessed a significant rise in counterfeit products, particularly across sectors like FMCG, pharmaceuticals, and automotive spare parts. Brands are increasingly recognizing that traditional anti-counterfeiting measures such as holograms, barcodes, watermarks, and serial numbers are no longer foolproof, as they can be easily replicated.
In response, a notable shift is underway: brands are moving from conventional to intelligent packaging solutions. These next-generation packaging systems safeguard product authenticity, build consumer trust, strengthen brand loyalty, and drive repeat purchases. The future of brand protection lies in tech-enabled smart packaging, solutions that go beyond security to serve as dynamic platforms for data-driven decision-making. By enabling real-time tracking of counterfeit hotspots and facilitating consumer engagement at the point of authentication, these solutions empower brands to be proactive.
Looking ahead, the goal goes beyond merely detecting counterfeit products and aims to establish a connected, intelligent ecosystem that eliminates them at the source.
StartupTalky: Your patented technology offers invisible signatures embedded within packaging artwork. How has the adoption rate across industries like FMCG and automotive evolved over the past year, and what usage metrics or KPIs best capture this impact?
Over the years, we have witnessed a growth in brands across the FMCG and automotive industry adapting to our invisible signature technology, as the brands are cautious about how counterfeited products can cause economic and reputational risks. However, the needs of FMCG and automotive manufacturers remain different. The FMCG space is focusing on real-time consumer-level verification, and in the automotive industry, OEMs are adopting our solutions to ensure the authenticity of their aftermarket spare parts to maintain safety standards. We track KPIs by tracking the number of scans conducted, user engagement, and the reduction in counterfeit cases.
StartupTalky: With Ennteract offering detailed analytics on scan behaviour, what are some of the most surprising consumer patterns or geographic insights you’ve uncovered from product scans?
With thousands of product scans across markets, Ennteract, our consumer intelligence platform, has revealed some truly eye-opening insights. One of the most surprising patterns we have witnessed is the high volume of scans coming from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, where consumers are actively verifying product authenticity even more than in some urban centers. This challenges the assumption that tech-enabled engagement is largely limited to metro audiences.
Geographically, we have observed unexpected counterfeit hotspots emerging in regions previously considered low-risk. For example, certain areas and transit hubs show disproportionately high scan activity, often correlating with unauthorized distribution channels or grey market movement. These insights are invaluable for brands, helping them realign their logistics and enforcement strategies.
From a consumer behavior standpoint, the data has shown a growing demand for transparency, not just on authenticity, but also on product origins, certifications, and usage instructions. Consumers are engaging with packaging as an information gateway, not just a protection layer.
Ennteract doesn’t just expose counterfeits, it empowers brands to deeply understand where their products are being scanned, how consumers interact with them, and what motivates that interaction. This intelligence helps brands make smarter decisions around market expansion, targeted campaigns, and even packaging design.
StartupTalky: Your authentication solution requires no capital investment or process overhaul. Can you share a recent case where this ease of deployment influenced a brand’s decision to onboard Ennoventure, possibly with before-and-after data?
One of the leading global mobility giants recently signed up for our covert brand protection technology as it was seeing a 20-30% hit in topline revenue in certain markets, which was a direct result of counterfeiting. In an attempt to tackle counterfeiting, the brand had previously adopted a few legacy anti-counterfeit solutions, but they did not work because they were visible and easily manipulated. That’s when it chose to go with our disruptive new approach to anti-counterfeiting, our invisible signatures, which could be seamlessly integrated on product packaging with no process changes, and no capital expenditure. Moreover, these signatures enabled an easy authentication process for all the stakeholders via a simple smartphone scan.
StartupTalky: Are you focusing more on growing in the US and Europe right now, or are there upcoming plans to expand faster in places like India and the Middle East? What market factors are guiding this?
Yes, we are focusing more on growing in the US and Europe currently. We are guided by multiple factors:
Our expansion strategy is shaped by a combination of market readiness, regulatory environments, consumer behavior, and the urgency of counterfeiting threats.
In developed markets like the US and Europe, stringent regulations around product authentication, serialization, and supply chain integrity, especially in pharmaceuticals and consumer goods, are strong drivers. These regions also have higher digital maturity, with brands actively seeking advanced, data-driven solutions that integrate seamlessly without disrupting manufacturing processes.
On the other hand, markets like India and the Middle East are witnessing a sharp rise in counterfeiting incidents alongside rapid digital adoption. In India, growing consumer awareness, government initiatives promoting digital verification, and the ubiquity of smartphones make the ecosystem ideal for our non-intrusive, smartphone-enabled authentication. Similarly, in the Middle East, a strong focus on brand reputation, regulatory modernization, and cross-border trade dynamics is opening doors for secure, tech-enabled packaging solutions.
Ultimately, we are guided by the intersection of regulatory push, consumer demand for authenticity, and the need for scalable solutions that deliver both security and business intelligence. These are the indicators we track as we scale across geographies.
StartupTalky: Vyu, your consumer-facing app, is configurable and brand-aligned. How are brands leveraging this to drive post-scan engagement or loyalty, and what percentage of your client base has opted for such customisation?
With our Vyu app, brands can drive post-scan engagement at the point of authentication in several ways, including:
- Personalized content: Brands use Vyu to share relevant information such as how-to videos, usage instructions, or sustainability messaging, enhancing consumer trust and product value.
- Loyalty programs and rewards: Verified scans can trigger discounts or exclusive offers, encouraging repeat purchases and long-term loyalty.
- Localized campaigns: Based on scan data, brands can launch region-specific campaigns or offers, adding a personalized layer to every interaction.
Vyu goes beyond authentication, it helps brands turn every scan into a touchpoint for building deeper, more loyal customer relationships. Some of our clients have opted for this customisation.
StartupTalky: How do your clients typically measure ROI from using Ennoventure’s platform, and what do you believe sets your solution apart in a space crowded with QR codes and visible authentication tools?
In a space saturated with QR codes, holograms, and other visible authentication tools, what sets Ennoventure apart is our invisible, non-intrusive, and cloud-based approach to brand protection.
Unlike QR codes or overt markers that can be duplicated or tampered with, our patented technology embeds a cryptographic signature directly into the packaging artwork—without altering the design or requiring any changes to the manufacturing process. This signature is invisible to the naked eye and can be authenticated instantly using any smartphone, making it secure, discreet, and easy to scale across geographies and product lines.
Another key differentiator is the intelligence layer we provide through our Ennteract dashboard, which is our analytics platform. Every scan feeds into a real-time dashboard that offers brands actionable insights on consumer behavior, grey market activity, and potential counterfeit threats.
Moreover, our configurable front-end app, Vyu, allows brands to customize the post-scan experience, turning authentication into a powerful engagement tool that drives loyalty, education, and feedback loops. Hence, with our platform, clients not just get access to real-time actionable insights around counterfeit activity but are also able to drive post-scan engagement.
We are not just providing a tool to detect counterfeits, we are offering a smart, connected ecosystem that helps brands protect, engage, and grow in a digitally empowered marketplace.
StartupTalky: What role does AI play beyond just encryption in your platform, for example, in anomaly detection, counterfeit tracking, or real-time market feedback loops?
AI plays a foundational role across our platform, far beyond just encryption. While our patented encryption secures product authenticity, it’s AI that brings intelligence, adaptability, and strategic value to the entire ecosystem.
For instance, in anomaly detection, our AI algorithms analyze scan data points to identify unusual patterns, such as unexpected scan volumes in low-distribution regions, sudden spikes in verification failures, or geographically dispersed activity that doesn’t align with official supply chains. This enables brands to spot and act on counterfeit activity or grey market distribution in real time.
AI also powers real-time market feedback loops. By analyzing consumer interactions, such as frequency, location, and content engagement post-scan, brands gain granular insights into what’s resonating with customers and where trust gaps may exist. This intelligence can then be used to refine marketing campaigns and product positioning.
AI transforms Ennoventure’s platform from a passive authentication tool into a dynamic intelligence engine, one that continuously evolves to help brands protect, engage, and grow smarter.
StartupTalky: As a SaaS company operating in the brand protection domain, how do you foresee emerging technologies like blockchain or quantum computing intersecting with your roadmap in the next 3–5 years?
As a SaaS company focused on securing brands and supply chains, we see emerging technologies like blockchain and quantum computing playing an increasingly critical role in shaping the future of brand protection in the coming future. As global regulations evolve and demand for transparent supply chains intensifies, we foresee a broader integration of blockchain to build immutable e-pedigrees, strengthen audit trails, and support compliance in sectors like pharmaceuticals, FMCG, and automotive. This will allow brands to track every touchpoint in the product journey with full confidence, while also offering consumers proof of authenticity in a decentralized, tamper-proof format.
Quantum computing, while still nascent, presents both a challenge and an opportunity. On one hand, it will eventually redefine security standards by potentially breaking conventional encryption. On the other hand, it opens the door to far more advanced cryptographic algorithms and faster data processing. At Ennoventure, we are closely monitoring developments in quantum-resilient cryptography and plan to future-proof our encryption methodologies as this technology matures.
Ultimately, our focus remains on delivering scalable, non-intrusive, and intelligent brand protection. Emerging technologies like blockchain and quantum computing will serve as powerful enablers, helping us build more transparent, secure, and responsive platforms for the brands of tomorrow.
StartupTalky: From a leadership perspective, how have you navigated the challenges of scaling a deep-tech solution across culturally and operationally diverse markets like the US, India, and the Middle East?
Scaling Ennoventure across such diverse markets has been a balancing act between standardizing our deep-tech platform and deeply localizing our engagement approach. The core tech—encrypted, invisible signatures embedded into products —remains globally consistent. But how we position and deploy it changes.
From a leadership standpoint, we built the company on four key principles:
- zero disruption to packaging lines
- invisible & highly secure solution
- smartphone-powered & exponentially scalable
- real-time, scan-level analytics
These made adoption easier across operationally diverse environments.
We’ve invested in local teams who understand the cultural and regulatory nuances because deep-tech may be global, but trust is always local.
