Nykaa has developed an incubator program to provide budding beauty companies with funding and coaching as they expand.
Brands must participate in the program and demonstrate their brand value, with the top brand receiving a prize of 4 crore ($500,000).
Nykaa, India’s leading cosmetic e-commerce company, has launched an effort to promote some of the country’s numerous beauty entrepreneurs and help establish domestic brands.
Nykaa’s new incubation programme allows beauty businesses in the nation to display their brand and win a grant of up to 4 crore ($500,000) as well as a future acquisition chance. Nykaa launched ‘Cosmetics&You’ on July 20 in collaboration with American beauty giant Estee Lauder, with a prize fund of 4 crore to be dispersed to enterprises picked by a panel of fashion entrepreneurs.
Nykaa stated that they are not interested in acquiring shares in the winning firms in exchange for the award amount, although they could.
“There is a potential that we may invest in these brands, but that is not the program’s goal. The goal is to provide them with a pure gift of funds in exchange for no equity. The winning businesses will be able to debut on Nykaa’s website and stores if they are ready,” said Achint Nayar, CEO of e-commerce giant Nykaa and son of founder Falguni Nayar.
The program seeks to assist founders, innovators, and creators in holistically growing their companies by setting brand goals, accomplishing scale aspirations, and curating product portfolios that appeal to a new generation of Indian customers. A jury comprised of actress Katrina Kaif, designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee, and stylist Anita Shroff Adajania will be assessing and guiding the future beauty company.
Shana stated that they are seeking for businesses similar to Haeckel’s, a personal care firm located in the United Kingdom in which Estee Lauder recently invested.
“Our objective for Beauty & You is to leverage India’s entrepreneurial drive to develop next-generation beauty products by offering possibilities that help place brands on a long-term, sustainable growth path,” Randhava added.
It is not been decided how many winners will be announced; it might be one or four. Masterclasses, financial help, mentorship, visibility, and distribution support will be offered to the selected startup businesses. The application period begins on August 1 and ends on September 30, with winners revealed in November.
Nykaa CEO Achint Nayar stated, “Brands participating should have enthusiasm, and the rest we can help with. We have infrastructure to assist them in building and developing on it.”
