How Kolkata-based The Earth Collective is creating a niche in the hair care segment

One thing that entrepreneur Shaily Kataruka was always good at was experimenting with hair and hair care products. She would never hesitate to try different things to keep her hair shiny and lush. This became all the more critical for her after she had children. 

“After having children, especially my daughter, I began to take care of their hair right away. My husband Ashish, on the other hand, was never much into hair care and ended up suffering significant hair loss. Amongst my family and friends, I came across many who faced various issues regarding hair care and nourishment,” says Shaily. 

One day, Ashish, based on his personal experience and industry insights, told Shaily there were some gaps in the Indian hair care sector. While people kept searching for good hair products, they did not have a solution. 

This led Shaily to start The Earth Collective in March 2020 in Kolkata.

“We wanted everyone to realise that taking care of their hair was as essential as skincare. We wanted to offer a range of hair care products to suit every individual’s needs," says Shaily.

"We understand that every hair type is different and deserves products suited to it its concern. We have come up with solutions that work their ways around the limitations of each hair type and infuse them with vigour and nourishment. We offer a range of products catering to almost all hair concerns, so that there is something for everyone,” she adds.  

Today, the brand offers products such as hair oils, shampoos, conditioners, hair masks, serums, and sprays.

ALSO READ

Why data privacy and security have become increasingly important for growth in a hybrid world

Starting up 

Shaily started up just a week before the lockdown. While her husband and his family have already been in the cosmetics business for over 40 years now, Shaily decided there was a need for a new company that specifically focused on hair care. 

“While people kept searching for good hair products, they hardly focused on scalp care. We wanted to make everyone appreciate that taking care of the scalp was essential for healthy, lustrous locks. The truth is, only proper nourishment of the scalp can ensure beautiful hair. With focus only on hair care, The Earth Collective fills in a prominent need gap in the Indian market,” says Shaily. 

Launching a new venture during the pandemic was challenging, but amidst the turbulence, the team had a good take off as the brand was focused on being digital first. 

Also, the family’s experience in the cosmetic industry, an efficient research and development team, a certified and a well-equipped manufacturing unit, manpower, and various other teams already in place helped the brand. 

Challenges 

“The biggest challenge was to get the formulations to be result-oriented. Since inception, the idea was to make it a global brand, so the formulations, packaging, aesthetics, and marketing had to meet certain standards. Along the way, we were lucky to have come across people and companies who understood and shared our vision for the brand,” adds Shaily. 

Today, the Kolkata-based startup has a team of 12-15 members from various backgrounds. While some members are from its other company, some new hires were made over time. 

“We pride ourselves as the hair specialists and intend to give the market more innovative solutions to scalp and hair care during the year. We have carved our niche with unparalleled haircare products. We have decided to focus and channelise our resources in one aspect and get to the root of it as your hair specialist. And this we do not just through innovative products like tonics and moisturisers for hair, but also through our engagement with customers,” says Shaily. 

She adds they provide consultations unlike many other brands, which are free of charge. The focus is to help clients in choosing the right products best-suited for their hair concerns, guiding them on usage and taking constant feedback from them to understand their experience.

ALSO READ

[Product Roadmap] How Qwipo uses technology to help over 7,000 retailers connect with prime vendors

Revenue model and products 

The company makes revenue by selling products through its website as well as other ecommerce platforms like Amazon, Nykaa, Flipkart, Tata Cliq, and Vanity Wagon. The Earth Collective have even tied up with newer platforms like Aardae that provide Indian brands to overseas markets like Singapore. 

The products are priced in the range of Rs 750 to Rs 4350. 

“Since we follow a D2C model, every client is important. And it is through our engagement with them that we have a fantastic repeat rate. We spend time understanding their concerns and expectations when it comes to hair care and this helps us in our product innovations as well. By starting international shipping, the learning for us is going to be so much more by strengthening our knowledge of hair care traditions from around the world,” explains Shaily. 

“We understand that every hair type is different and deserves products suited to its concern. We have come up with solutions that work their way around the limitations of each hair concern. We have spent years in researching and fine tuning the products before its launch. We offer a range of products catering to almost all hair concerns so that there is something for everyone,” says Shaily. 

According to the founder, The Earth Collective is inspired not only by Ayurveda, but a range of ancient traditions from around the world. The team purchases certified ingredients from India as well as other renowned global sources. 

“Aesthetics play an important role for us. We have spent a lot of time on getting the brand identity in terms of packaging and bottling it right. Visual communication and packaging had to resonate with the brand’s ideologies and we believe we have hit the right spot in this aspect as well,” says Shaily. 

ALSO READ

[Techie Tuesday] Meet IISc’s Prasanta Kumar Ghosh whose research on speech and voice technology products are helping cancer patients

Market and future 

An Avendus report says India’s D2C business will be worth $100 billion in the next five years.

India has as many as 600 D2C brands – a number that will significantly grow in the next five years, and more than 16 brands with an annual turnover of more than $60 million. Some of the D2C startups in the beauty segment include Juicy Chemistry, The Switch Fix, Mamaearth, Piligrim, Plum, Earth Rhythm, etc. 

“Our aim is to grow the brand and always be seen as ‘the hair specialist’. We want to focus on strengthening our brand positioning and make sure whenever a customer thinks of hair care, they think of us,” says Shaily.

The team is also looking to strengthen the unisex appeal of the brand. 

Speaking of the future, Shaily says,  “We are also looking forward to a B2B expansion. New products are in the pipeline and we look forward to launching them. Our research continues to come from ingredients and hair care traditions used around the world and learn from the very best. The insights for these products to come from a need gap in the market which we understand through our conversations with customers and consultations.”