“India Shoppe made its foray into retail in July’2013, with a state-of-the-art e-commerce portal, followed by its maiden showroom in Chennai. The company deals in Health, Wellness & Nutrition, Skin Care, Oral Care, Hair Care, Cleaners, and Home Products that provide for daily household needs, and has developed its private labels, under the brand names “ON & ON” and “ELEMENTS”. Startup Reporter recently conducted an interaction with Mr. Rajesh Chandan, Founder and Managing Director, India Shoppe
How do you see the demand for Ayurveda products in the post-COVID world?
Ayurveda is being hailed for its efficacy globally and for being therapeutic in treating several of today’s ailments that have sprung out with the rapid changes in our lifestyle. After understanding how crippled this wide world could be with Covid even in the 21st century, people have grown health-conscious and are actively discussing immunity & mental health. So much so that, our traditional Ayurvedic products have become the people’s choice for their family’s health and wellness. To meet this rising demand, India Shoppe promises quicker deliveries with 50 Stores & 650+ Pickup centers across the county.
What change in consumer trends have you seen this season as compared to the previous year?
COVID-19 has reminded us of our resilience & the spirit of fighting back. We witnessed it, first-hand in our soaring sales figures which are a testimony to the change in consumer choices. The desire for quick-fix meds faded quickly enough & therapeutic or ayurvedic products which end up redesigning our lifestyle into a cleaner & healthier one became people’s choice. For e.g. Kavach Prash, Turmeric bath soap, and Herbal toothpaste are some of our products, which increased in sales, this season.
Why are Ayurveda-based products in demand in tier 2-3 cities?
India Shoppe was designed to be a lifestyle brand with a sincere focus on the Tier2 & Tier3 cities & towns as they are thickly populated with the “Upper-middle” & “Middle” income groups who’re always aspiring for a better lifestyle. Ayurveda is characterized as the ancient school of medicine that is ‘Preventive’ in nature. We have been spreading awareness towards switching to a healthier lifestyle, as we establish fresh P.U.C.s & Stock-points in the Tier2, Tier3 & even Tier4 cities to keep up with the demand by implementing the right processes & checks.
Why is the Ayurveda-based wellness market growing?
It shouldn’t come as a surprise that there was a significant shift in consumer’s preference, during the Covid’19 pandemic. Our people are clearly choosing Ayurvedic products that are designed to promote a healthier lifestyle. Our consistently climbing sales figures are evidence of the shift in consumer preference. For eg. Compared to ’21, the consumption levels of Elements Wellness GreenTea (Kashmiri Kawah & Desi Kawah) have increased by 400% in 2022.
How do you differentiate your products from the other brands?
We design & create enough demand through various social- media & other channels of Marketing, for our products of high quality by:
Not adding chemicals, that are harmful to the body.
Using products made of natural ingredients after extensive study & research.
Selecting raw materials that conform to API and in-house quality standards.
Having our experts work closely with scientific researchers & market analysts to stay updated on developing new products & existing ones.
What kind of growth do you expect in this space?
Thanks to the vast product range in Beauty, Lifestyle, Health, and Wellness segments, India Shoppe began its journey in 2013-’14 with less than INR 100 crore and in 2021-’22 we have grown to INR 1300 crore. With have been growing consistently with a CAGR of 22%. Therefore we expect our growth to continue at this pace and touch Rs 1500 crore by end of this financial year. We have been exploring the possibility of expansion, especially in the neighboring countries.
