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The Financial Express
Jun 19, 2026, 05:09 PM
Indian Beauty Startup Innovist Attracts L'Oréal Investment with Science-First Approach
Most entrepreneurs spend years chasing a single breakthrough. Rohit Chawla, Sifat Khurana and Vimal Bhola, co-founders of direct-to-consumer beauty startup Innovist, have built two. The trio first made their mark with The Man Company, a pioneer in India’s premium men’s grooming market. A decade later, they have repeated the feat with Innovist, a science-led beauty and personal care company that has attracted a majority investment from L’Oréal in a deal valued at around Rs 4,000 crore. Their journey reflects not only entrepreneurial resilience but also an ability to spot shifts in consumer behaviour before the market catches up. When The Man Company launched in 2015, India’s personal care industry looked very different. Premium grooming products for men remained a niche category. Chawla and his team saw a new consumer emerging — urban, aspirational and increasingly willing to pay for better products and stronger brands. That insight helped transform The Man Company into one of the country’s most recognisable grooming startups before its acquisition by Emami in tranches beginning in 2017 in a transaction valued at around Rs 400 crore. For many entrepreneurs, that would have been the destination. For Chawla, Khurana and Bhola, it was only the beginning. Their experience revealed a deeper transformation underway. Indian consumers were becoming more informed, more discerning and increasingly interested in what was inside a product rather than merely what appeared on its packaging. In 2018, the three launched Innovist, originally known as Onesto Labs. Their premise was simple but ambitious: build a new generation of personal care brands centred on science, transparency and performance. Unlike many consumer startups that prioritise speed to market, the founders spent nearly a year investing in research, formulations and manufacturing capabilities before launching Bare Anatomy in 2019. The decision reflected the complementary strengths that have made the partnership effective. As founder and chief executive officer, Rohit Chawla became the strategist and builder. With a background in management consulting and a proven track record in consumer businesses, he championed a model built around problem-solution brands and scientific credibility rather than broad lifestyle positioning. Sifat Khurana, co-founder and chief marketing officer, became the bridge between science and consumers. In a sector crowded with exaggerated claims, she helped create brands that educated rather than merely advertised. Her approach translated complex conversations around ingredients, formulations and efficacy into accessible narratives that resonated with a generation of digitally savvy consumers seeking transparency and trust. Vimal Bhola, co-founder and chief R&D scientist, provided the scientific engine. With deep expertise in formulation science and product development, he helped build the in-house research capabilities that became Innovist’s defining advantage. At a time when much of the industry still relied heavily on marketing-led differentiation, Innovist invested in laboratories, testing and evidence-led innovation. Together, the founders built a portfolio designed around specialised consumer needs rather than generic beauty categories. Bare Anatomy focused on performance-driven hair care. Chemist at Play targeted science-backed skincare. SunScoop carved out a position in the rapidly growing sunscreen category. The strategy aligned closely with the evolution of India’s beauty consumer. Today’s shoppers are reading ingredient labels, comparing formulations online, following dermatologists on social media and demanding evidence before making purchasing decisions. Innovist was among the first Indian companies to recognise that trust — not celebrity endorsements — would become the most valuable currency in personal care. The numbers suggest the founders got the timing right. Innovist ended FY25 with revenue of around Rs 300 crore, roughly treble the Rs 100 crore reported in FY24. The company also reported its first annual profit of Rs 12 crore in FY25, compared with a loss of Rs 12.5 crore in the previous year. The L’Oréal investment in 2026 further validates the company’s science-first approach and signals growing global interest in India’s emerging beauty-tech ecosystem. It also underlines how rapidly the market has evolved — from one driven largely by branding and aspiration to one increasingly shaped by ingredients, efficacy and consumer trust. Innovist’s success is also about three founders who recognised a fundamental shift in consumer behaviour early, built for it patiently and turned trust into a competitive advantage.
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