I want to disrupt the skincare business with a gender neutral brand: Divya Malpani

Adgully has been 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 have been featuring numerous local/ homegrown businesses, brands, and Apps in the count.

In conversation with Adgully, Divya Malpani, Founder, Skinvest, speaks about the journey of her entrepreneurial venture, curating a brand for the Indian youth, the mission and vision of her venture, the biggest challenges faced and how she has overcome them, and more.

What was the inspiration behind starting Skinvest? 

Skinvest’s idea was conceived in 2020, when I was finishing my graduation at Northeastern University, Boston. I was friends with a diverse set of people with different skin types and tones – from Caucasian, to Indian, Hispanic and black. 

I realised how different products reacted to my skin compared to my friends’. It then triggered how the beauty industry has been overlooking Indian skin until 2020. All the skincare brands that we would use, like Lakme, L’Oreal, Dove, etc., are all brands that are made in, made for and tested on Caucasian skin. Indian skin is more sensitive and prone to pigmentation and thus, has its own unique skin needs and concerns that need special attention and care. 

Moreover, most of the brands focussed on anti-aging and other concerns that don’t really reflect the modern and outgoing GenZ and Millennials of India for their unique skin needs. 

Skincare, unfortunately and especially in India, is also perceived as a feminine chore. I wanted to disrupt this perception by coming out with a gender neutral skincare brand as I believe skincare is for everyone, no matter the gender.

Acne and stretch marks are super common, but are one of the main reasons to shy down the youth into being themselves and feel happy in their skin. We had to break this with the help of Skinvest. 

Skinvest is addressing all of these gaps in the market by curating a brand for the Indian youth by focusing on gender neutrality and mental health advocacy. We are setting new standards by providing innovative, premium, high quality, fun to use, effective, vegan, non-comedogenic, (paraben, cruelty, PEG, and Phthalate) free skincare in India. 

How would you describe your start-up’s mission and vision? What are the long-term goals that you’re aiming to achieve?

Mission: To positively change the way every Skinvest customer feels about their skin by collecting what they need and want from modern skincare to cater to their unique skin concerns.

Vision: To make Skinvest the go-to brand for the youth of India for all their skin concerns. To build a brand that is not just “selling” skincare products but is promoting a mindset and a lifestyle for overall well being. 

What differentiates your product or service from others in the market? What unique value do you offer to customers?

• High quality
• Innovation in formulation, packaging made convenient and easy to use
• Products catering to the niche skin issues faced by the Indian skin
• Multifunctional products
• Travel friendly
• Dermatologist tested
• With clinically proven ingredients
• Gender neutral
• Super clean formulation
• Combining potent ingredients with powerful Indian natural botanicals
• Vegan and cruelty free
• Customer success focussed
• Result oriented
• Strong connect with the youth
• Transparency
• Community building

In the next 5 years, I project Skinvest being the go-to brand for the youth of India for all their skin and wellness concerns. I don’t want to restrict Skinvest into being just a skincare brand, but a wellness brand overall, with multiple courses, activities and products that cater to the overall wellbeing of the youth.

What is your target market and customer segmentation?

Demographic: The target market for Skinvest includes individuals aged 18-40 from the upper-middle class to upper-class income range. This encompasses all genders and focuses on metropolitan cities in India.

Psychographic: Skinvest customers embody the essence of modern India. They are bold, adventurous, and outgoing individuals who prioritise self-care and seek skincare solutions for achieving radiant and protected skin. They are willing to invest in brands that offer clinical products, prioritise ingredients, and address specific skin concerns based on their skin type. Environmental sustainability, cruelty-free practices, paraben-free formulations, and vegan claims are important to them. These customers actively participate in social media, sharing their daily lives and seeking beauty knowledge. They value transparency and are intellectuals who delve into the details behind the scenes.

Behavioral: Skinvest customers engage in extensive research before making purchasing decisions. They rely on social media, existing reviews, discussion groups, e-commerce websites, and blogs to gather information. Ratings, reviews, and tutorials play a crucial role in their decision-making process. They are influenced by beauty influencers who provide valuable research, recommendations, and reviews. The target market shows a preference for online channels, as internet retailing gains momentum, especially among GenZ and millennials. Social media serves as a primary platform for communication, purchasing, and following brands.

Who are your ideal customers, and how do you plan to reach them?

Our ideal customers at Skinvest are individuals aged 18-40 from the upper-middle class to upper-class income range residing in metropolitan cities of India. They are bold, adventurous, and outgoing, representing modern India. Our target customers prioritise self-care and seek skincare solutions that promote glowing and protected skin. They are willing to invest in brands offering clinical products, ingredient-focused formulations, and solutions tailored to their specific skin type and concerns. They value sustainability, cruelty-free practices, and vegan claims.

To reach our ideal customers, we have devised a multi-faceted approach. Firstly, we leverage the power of social media platforms, particularly Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube, to connect and engage with our target audience. We actively share informative content, beauty tips, and behind-the-scenes glimpses of our brand to pique their interest and foster a sense of transparency.

Influencer partnerships play a crucial role in reaching our ideal customers. We collaborate with beauty influencers and intellectuals who resonate with our brand values and have a strong online presence. Through these influencers, we can generate awareness, gain credibility, and tap into their followers, who closely follow their recommendations and reviews.

Additionally, we employ targeted digital marketing strategies, utilising data-driven approaches to reach our specific demographic. We optimise our presence on e-commerce platforms, ensuring our products are readily available for purchase online. By leveraging customer reviews, ratings, and testimonials, we build trust and confidence in our brand, enabling our ideal customers to make informed decisions.

Through strategic partnerships with relevant retail outlets, beauty salons, and spas in metropolitan cities, we aim to expand our physical presence and offer personalised experiences to our target customers.

By implementing a comprehensive marketing mix that encompasses social media, influencer collaborations, digital advertising, e-commerce optimisation, and strategic partnerships, we intend to effectively reach and engage our ideal customers, establishing Skinvest as their go-to brand for skincare solutions.

What are the biggest challenges that you’ve faced so far in building your start-up? How have you overcome them, or how do you plan to address them in the future?

Competition: The beauty industry is highly competitive. Facing intense competition from other established skincare brands, I need to stay updated with the latest trends and constantly innovate to stay ahead of the competitors.

Financial Management: Starting a business requires a lot of capital, and managing finances can sometimes be challenging, especially since we are in the growth phase.

Brand Building: Building a brand is a time-consuming and challenging process. Need to establish a strong brand identity, develop a loyal customer base, and create brand awareness through effective marketing campaigns.

Hiring and Managing a Team: Hiring the right talent for a start-up and managing them can be challenging.

Scaling Up

Product Development: Developing new products that meet the needs of our target market requires extensive research and development. This is a significant challenge, as we need to balance the cost and demand while providing the best quality.

Time management: Working in a start-up is a lot different from working in a bigger organisation. I have to wear multiple caps throughout the day. Sometimes working in marketing, sometimes operations, accounting, IT and most of the time all of them. Managing time in a way that I give attention to all these segments while scaling is the most significant challenge. 

Balancing work and life: I sometimes work 11+ hours as being the founder sometimes requires me to do so. Although having a healthy balance between work and life is just as important to excel at work. This is one of the biggest challenges I have faced and I still do.

How do you stay informed about industry trends and emerging technologies? How do you incorporate them into your start-up’s strategy and product development?

I make sure to keep myself up-to-date with the latest skincare trends and consumer preferences. This means regularly researching and analysing industry data, tracking competitors, and staying informed about new product releases and marketing strategies.

At Skinvest, we conduct regular focus groups and surveys to understand what our target market needs and wants from modern skincare, to understand what niche skin concerns are not catered to by the Indian market, what is lacking from the market and where the demand is at. Gathering all this data and analysing it helps us to not only keep up but be ahead of the market in terms of new product development as well as making improvements to the current product line. 

What would be your message for budding entrepreneurs?

• Believe in yourself and your abilities. Trust that you have the skills and knowledge to make it happen and don’t let anyone discourage you.
• Learn as much as you can.
• Building a network of like-minded individuals and mentors can be invaluable.
• Be prepared to work hard as success in business is rarely handed to you on a silver platter.
• Embrace failure: Don’t be afraid of it; instead, learn from your mistakes, adapt your approach, and move forward.
• Set SMART goals.
• Take calculated risks. Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and take on new challenges. With risk comes the potential for great rewards.