L’Oreal to acquire majority stake in India’s Innovist

French cosmetics group L’Oreal will acquire a majority stake in ⁠India’s Innovist, it said on Thursday, as it looks to step up its share of one of the world’s fastest growing markets.

The deal, which includes ⁠rights to ‌buy out the minority shareholders ⁠in full, adds local brands including haircare range Bare Anatomy and Chemist at Play skincare to ​its ​portfolio. Financial details were not disclosed.

“Our investment in this innovative Indian startup is a clear testament to our unwavering commitment to expanding L’Oreal’s footprint ‌in ​India,” said CEO Nicolas Hieronimus in a statement.

Hieronimus said earlier ‌this year that ⁠the company was “not meeting expectations” in India, which is ‌seeing rapid growth driven by young, affluent, social media-savvy shoppers with rising disposable income. The company, which makes about 1% of its turnover in India, had high single-digit growth in the ​country last year, but “did not gain a lot of market share, if any”, Hieronimus told investors after reporting annual results.

It recently ​brought in ‌a ​new CEO to boost its performance. L’Oreal said ‌Innovist ‌is one of the fastest-growing “science-led and digital-first” personal care companies in India, based on clean formulations and transparent ingredients.

The deal ⁠is set to close in the next few months, post regulatory approvals, the company said. It ‌also said that the founders ​and minority shareholders will continue to operate the business in collaboration with L’Oreal India. 

“We founded Innovist on the conviction that Indian consumers deserve beauty products built on real science with full transparency on formulation, and that these products could be made in India to global standards,” said Rohit Chawla, CEO and founder of Innovist in a press release. “This partnership with L’Oréal brings together a deep alignment in this vision and product philosophy, with the global scientific innovation resources to grow this ambition. Together, we see a significant opportunity to build the next generation of beauty brands.”

FashionNetwork.com with Reuters