Born during Covid times, how Winston is winning over the beauty care market

Adgully has been turning the spotlight on the entrepreneurs who fought against all odds to bring their dreams to fruition in our special series – START-UP STARS. We at Adgully wholeheartedly support the ‘Vocal for Local’ movement and have been featuring numerous local/ homegrown businesses, brands, and Apps in the count.

Founded in October 2021 by co-founders Himanshu Adlakha and Nikita Adlakha, Winston aims to bring its customers the optimum salon experience at home, with a wide range of pro skincare essentials adapting high-end technology. Winston set forth its personal care journey, crafted especially for women, offering compact, easy to carry, portable and top appliances, including hair remover, facial cleansers, blackhead remover, and much more.

Interestingly, Winston’s co-founders appeared in Episode 5 of ‘Shark Tank India Season 2’, seeking Rs 1 crore for 4% equity at Rs 25 crore valuation. They ultimately received Rs 1 crore for 10% equity.

In conversation with Adgully, Himanshu Adlakha, Co-founder, Winston Electronics, shares the story behind setting up his venture, the two fundamental principles that are critical drivers of business success, leveraging digital for business growth, and more.

Please take us through your journey as an entrepreneur. What motivated you to establish the company?

For me, the phrase “business” was always recognizable, because I come from a family that values achievement and has a history of taking on diverse businesses like LG and Luminous. A desire of mine has always been to own a brand. The lockdown phase eventually made my business decision come to life.

What was the need for this brand from a consumer’s perspective? What is the core business proposition?

Started in the year 2021, when everybody was fighting with COVID impacts, sacrificing personal care routine was also one of the impacts that people were facing. So, we set forth our personal care journey crafted especially for women to have a comfortable personal-care routine at home. What we feel now is competent care is not something that was just an ask of COVID only, but it’s an essential need of the coming brighter era. That’s why with Winston, we are promoting ‘smarter way to care’!

What are your key learnings so far? How do you see the company progressing in 2023?

Every business journey comes with 2 lessons – first is keep your customers satisfied, and second is keep your employees happy. These are the two fundamental principles that are critical drivers of business success. And we are following the same rules.

Winston is not a brand that is working just for itself, but is giving priority to consumer needs and satisfaction. By genuinely knowing what the customer wants, paying attention to their input, and providing them with a product in line with their needs, we are trying to create an organised market in this industry. To do this, we seize every opportunity to offer the best to the table. Accordingly, we are looking forward to achieving our planned KPIs for the year, that is, introducing some powerful performing new SKUs, collaborating with some alike brands, and achieving more in terms of sales and branding.

How is digital helping you further your business?

Digital is the need of the hour and future of every aspect. Consequently, it is helping the brand to grow in every aspect. From social media marketing to performance marketing to e-commerce marketing, the digital era is taking the lead in our brand-building. Winston is a brand that started its journey through means of influencer marketing and now is into omnichannel marketing. So, you can say that be it branding, promoting, or selling, digital marketing is the only way by which Winston can take forward its success journey.

How did you identify your TG? Did you carry out any feasibility studies before starting your business?

Yes, you do a lot of research and studying before establishing a firm. A similar thing occurred to us, although we knew exactly what area of items we were in when we launched the business, namely the women’s grooming range. We advanced the concept by conducting a market analysis, researching prospective rival brands, coordinating with various suppliers, and doing a lot more. As a result, we started focusing on working women or those with an interest in skincare and make-up as we knew our target audience was women and it was COVID time. We began targeting similar audiences at the same time, and the results confirmed that we were on the correct track when they were as expected.

What were the challenges that you faced in your start-up journey and how did you overcome them?

Nikita and I were able to grow our brand Winston Electronics quite smoothly because of the lessons we had learned from our previous firm. Big goals often necessitate overcoming obstacles, and my greatest obstacle was to justify our prices. When we entered this technologically advanced grooming sector, other brands were offering comparable goods for incredibly low prices. Yet the 3S (Smart, Sturdy & Super Easy) strategy was successful in winning over the audience. Our earliest product launches all featured rechargeable batteries, a charging cord, and professional technologies like a callus remover with 360-degree rolling heads callus remover, etc. Even the look and touch was so premium that you can make out the difference between others and ours at first sight. In due course, customers also realised the same and started sharing the good reviews and explaining how they’re liking our products over others. So yes, this was a kind of first victory for our brand Winston.

What would be your message for budding entrepreneurs?

First and foremost, believe in yourself and your vision. Entrepreneurship is not just about building a business; it’s about bringing your unique ideas, passion, and creativity to life. So, embrace challenges as opportunities to learn and grow, and remember that setbacks are stepping stones to success.