French cosmetics giant L'Oréal has signed an agreement to acquire a majority stake in personal care startup Innovist, marking a significant step in expanding its presence in India's fast-growing beauty market. According to latest reports, the financial details of the transaction were not disclosed, though earlier media reports suggested the proposed deal could value Innovist between $350 million and $450 million (₹3,240–4,170 crore). The deal includes rights to buy out minority shareholders in full after regulatory approval, bringing local brands including haircare range Bare Anatomy and Chemist at Play skincare into L'Oréal's portfolio. The transaction is set to close in the coming months following regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. As per Business Standard, this partnership aims to combine L'Oréal's global expertise with Innovist's science-led products for Indian consumers, with the company set to begin consolidating Innovist's sales after the deal closes.
The acquisition comes as L'Oréal seeks to improve its performance in India, where the company currently generates approximately 1% of its global turnover. As reported by Reuters, CEO Hieronimus stated 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. According to Reuters, the company achieved high single-digit growth in India last year but "did not gain a lot of market share, if any." Hieronimus told investors after reporting annual results that the company recently brought in a new CEO to boost its performance. Fabrice Megarbane, President Consumer Products Division, L'Oréal, emphasized that India is one of the most exciting and fast-evolving beauty markets in the world, and this partnership places them right at the heart of that momentum.
According to latest reports, Innovist has established itself as one of the fastest-growing science-led and digital-first personal care companies in India, founded in 2019 by Rohit Chawla, Sifat Khurana and Vimal Bhola. The company's financial performance demonstrates remarkable growth, with revenue jumping 182% to ₹301 crore in FY25 and net profit reaching ₹12.5 crore. The company operates science-led personal care brands including Bare Anatomy and Chemist at Play, selling its products through direct-to-consumer channels, e-commerce marketplaces, quick commerce platforms, and offline retail stores. CEO & Founder Rohit Chawla emphasized that Innovist was founded on the conviction that Indian consumers deserve beauty products built on real science with full transparency on formulation, made in India to global standards. As reported by Business Standard, the company was looking to raise capital from new and existing investors in a largely primary round last year, before rebranding to Onesto Labs three years later.
Under the agreement, the founding team will remain in place as minority shareholders and will continue to operate and scale the business in collaboration with L'Oréal India. The Innovist brands will be integrated into L'Oréal's Consumer Products Division portfolio. Country Manager of L'Oréal India Jacques Lebel stated that the collaboration aims to bring L'Oréal closer to new generation of digitally-savvy Indian beauty consumers. Jacques Lebel added that by joining forces, they look forward to bringing L'Oréal even closer to the new generation of digitally-savvy Indian beauty consumers, while Fabrice Megarbane noted that this is a key milestone for the Consumer Products Division that reflects both their ambition and commitment to this extraordinary market. As per Business Standard, the founders will work alongside L'Oréal India to scale the brands further, with Nicolas Hieronimus, CEO of L'Oréal, stating that this investment is a clear testament to their unwavering commitment to expanding L'Oréal's footprint in India. Rohit Chawla, Founder and CEO of Innovist, noted that this partnership brings together deep alignment in vision and product philosophy, along with global scientific innovation resources to grow the ambition.
The L'Oréal-Innovist transaction represents part of a broader wave of consolidation in India's D2C beauty and wellness sector. In February, Hindustan Unilever Limited acquired the remaining 49% stake in Oziva for ₹824 crore. During the same month, USV acquired a 79% stake in Wellbeing Nutrition, while Marico bought a 60% stake in Cosmix at a ₹375 crore valuation. Other notable deals include Marico's acquisition of 4700BC, ITC's acquisition of Yoga Bar, and Honasa Consumer's acquisition of The Derma Co. The trend gained momentum last year with HUL's acquisition of Minimalist at a pre-money valuation of ₹2,955 crore. If completed at the upper end of the reported valuation range, the L'Oréal-Innovist transaction would surpass the HUL-Minimalist deal to become one of the largest acquisitions in India's D2C beauty and personal care segment. According to Crisil, around two-thirds of all acquisitions by FMCG players in the last five years have been in the D2C space, with notable deals including HUL's buyout of Minimalist last year, Marico's buying of Plix for ₹380 crore in 2023, Emami's ₹272-crore takeover of The Man Company in 2024, and ITC Ltd's acquisition of Yoga Bar for ₹225 crore in 2023.
