After the torrid success of mass to premium beauty brands, now uber-luxury companies are enticed by India’s beauty industry
New Delhi: Last week, Giorgio Armani rolled out its first Armani Beauty flagship store in New Delhi’s DLF Promenade mall. The development comes barely days after French luxury company Yves Saint Laurent rolled out its YSL Beauty flagship store in the city. Now, Gucci and Prada both are putting the finishing touches to their beauty-specific standalone stores in Nexus Select Citywalk Mall in New Delhi’s Saket.
“The stores will open soon,” said a person familiar with the development.
After the torrid success of mass to premium beauty brands, now uber-luxury companies are enticed by India’s beauty industry. Luxury companies from Armani, YSL, Gucci, Prada, Dior and Chanel among other chic labels are trying to cash in on an unprecedented run for such products in India amid a growing appetite for beauty items among the country’s burgeoning middle and upper middle classes.
Over the months, Dior Beauty and Chanel Beauty have been ramping up in India with standalone beauty-specialty stores.
The importance of India’s beauty market is being illustrated by the recent visits by global honchos or heads of companies that have large beauty plays in their portfolios.
In October, Stéphane de La Faverie, executive group president of The Estée Lauder Companies Inc visited India to study the country’s market and visited malls. Prior to that, Paul Merchant, chief executive of UK-based value retailer Primark was in India meeting Indian executives and touring shopping centres here. Then earlier this month, Unilever CEO Hein Schumacher came calling India. Primark primarily sells fashion apparel but the UK retailer also has a strong beauty portfolio.
Global honchos from retail and consumer companies have been making a beeline to India in the last two years as international corporations look to ramp up their investments here to cash-in on the growing middle class.
One particular segment of global retailers is even more energized in India: Beauty and cosmetics sellers. That is the exact reason that brought the Estee Lauder team to India. High-powered global delegations from L’Oreal, Japan’s Nars to Coty have visited India in the last two years. Estée Lauder, which owns a host of popular beauty labels including MAC, Bobbi Brown and Clinique, now plans to manufacture some of its products in India in a bid to cater to the growing demands.
India’s beauty and personal care market is likely to swell to $34 billion by 2028, up from $21 billion at present, according to a September report by Nykaa on Beauty Trends.
