Start-up Stars: The story of MamaEarth – born out of young parents’ concerns

While the global pandemic has bought economies to a halt and massively disrupted businesses, it has also fuelled start-up dreams and we even saw several Indian start-ups achieve Unicorn status during the pandemic period. The times have never been better for the budding entrepreneurs to give wings to their start-up dreams.

The Government, too, has come up with various schemes to support its ‘Vocal for Local’ drive. A case in point is the recent Rs 1,000 crore Start-up India Seed Fund announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Start-up India International Summit 2021 held earlier this year.

Adgully is 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 over the next few months will be featuring all local/ homegrown businesses, brands and Apps.

In the first of this series, Adgully spoke with Varun Alagh, Co-Founder and CEO, Honasa Consumer, the parent company of MamaEarth, to know how he achieved his start-up dreams, the challenges and the opportunities, building up the core brand proposition, the government clearances & approvals required, his success mantra and more. 

Please take us through your journey as an entrepreneur. What motivated you to establish your start-up? What were you doing prior to turning an entrepreneur?

After pursuing my MBA, I started my journey in the FMCG sector with HUL, moved on to becoming the Brand Manager at Diageo and Coca-Cola. But life took a spin when we had our first born. As young parents, Ghazal and I were constantly struggling to find chemical free products for our baby and often times we ended up importing products due to the dearth of options in India. This is what led us to create Mamaearth with a toxin free and safe product proposition.

What need gap did you want to fulfil with your start-up? What is the core business proposition?

When we started Mamaearth, there was a glaring need in the market for chemical free products for babies. With our product proposition of toxin free and safe babycare products, we wanted to create products of global standard, easily accessible to Indian parents. In fact, we wanted to create a purpose-led brand that made products that were safe for the consumers, and at the same time had a positive impact on the environment too.

The core proposition of the brand is to make Honest, Natural and Safe products packed with goodness inside. 

How did you identify your TG? Did you carry out any feasibility study prior to starting your business?

Since the inception of the brand comes from our personal experience, we realised that most millennial parents were looking for similar product propositions for their babies. We spent over a year in studying the market and evaluating the product proposition and the target consumers. 

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

We were extremely excited about our venture, but nothing comes without its challenges and our journey was no different. While we understood the requirement, we had to spend extensive amount of time and effort in identifying the raw material for the products, to onboarding manufacturing partners and getting necessary certifications and approvals. All impediments that we came across only motivated us to achieve what we were set out to achieve. In fact, when we look at what we have been able to create, all the efforts seem worthwhile. 

What were the clearances that you required for your venture from various authorities?

The cosmetic and personal care products industry is largely governed by the FDA. FDA has abundant regulatory and enforcement authority for cosmetics under the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetics Act. Consumers benefit from having FDA as a strong watchdog for their health and safety. 

Funds/ finance is a prime issue for almost all start-ups. What can the industry and the Government do to address this issue and ease the capital requirements of start-ups?

The market is extremely lucrative for start ups with a lot of Venture Capitalists on a lookout for interesting brand launches. We are grateful that our idea resonated with our investors and that has helped us expand and create something of value to our consumers. I strongly feel that if you have an idea that can transform the consumers’ lifestyle, you can rest assured there are investors ready to support you. 

Prime Minister Modi has just announced a Startup India Seed Fund. How do you see start-ups benefiting from it?

It is a great initiative by the Government and this will give a boost to many start-ups and give them a platform to showcase their innovation and abilities. The country has a lot of talent and such initiatives will definitely bring many ‘Make in India’ initiatives to the forefront. 

How is digital helping you further your business?

We are a digital-first brand and this has helped us reach out to the consumers directly and connect with them to understand their requirements and provide them with products that serve their needs. And with the advent of social commerce, digital channels are further boosting the business by providing a wider platform for digital presence. 

What were your key learnings from 2020? How do you see the start-up ecosystem progressing in 2021?

It’s been an interesting few months into unchartered territories. As consumers looked towards e-commerce for their personal care requirements, our D2C presence was a big benefit for us. We were able to restart our operations very quickly during the initial days of lockdown itself. With the sales from our website, and then e-commerce marketplaces opening up, we were able to reach our pre-COVID-19 numbers quickly, and have started growing on it over the last few months.

The buying behaviour of consumers has evolved over the years and the affinity towards online shopping has been increasing continually. Start-ups are fast understanding this shift and are focusing on building business that are adding value to the consumers’ lives. Owing to the lockdown, the D2C segment has seen a further surge. This sector is on its upward trajectory and will continue to grow in the future as well. 

What would be your message for the budding entrepreneurs?

If you have an idea and you truly believe in it, go for it. Let no one make you believe otherwise.