Estée Lauder and NYKAA announce winners of the Beauty&You Award in India

The Estée Lauder Companies (ELC)and Nykaa, one of India’s leading omnichannel beauty and lifestyle retailers, have announced the winners for Beauty&You India.

Created by ELC’s New Incubation Ventures and launched in partnership with Nykaa, Beauty&You India is an award program launched in July 2022, with an aim to discover, spotlight, and propel the next generation of Indian beauty brands.

With over 300 entries across 50 Indian cities, the application pool included a multitude of beauty brands across categories – skin care, hair care, fragrance, and colour cosmetics. The ten finalists presented their businesses to a jury of leading industry experts [1]. The finalists represent a variety of concepts ranging from breakthrough product innovation and re-imagining a centuries-old fragrance tradition to emerging consumer categories such as teen beauty, men’s skin care and digital beauty in the metaverse.

The winners, listed below, were announced at an awards evening at the St. Regis, Mumbai on November 9, 2022:

 In the IMAGINE category, a USD 75,000 prize for pre-launch concepts that are in the process of finalizing their businesses and brands, the winner is Sonya Khubchandani de Castelbajac, Bahut Beauty. Bahut Beauty’s new fragrance brand is inspired by India’s ancient historical perfume centre at Kannauj – a city in the heart of Uttar Pradesh that is akin to Grasse in France and the lesser known perfume capital of India. Drawing on its venerable tradition, Sonya Khubchandani de Castelbajac aims to develop an ethical and thoughtful homegrown brand, Deg & Bhapka (working title), that is experientially driven and celebrates the art and technology of the subcontinent.

 In the GROW category, a USD 150,000 prize for in-market businesses, the winner is Divya Malpani, Skinvest. Skinvest creates solutions for skin issues like pigmentation, cellulite and dark circles via innovative products that also focus on gender neutrality and mental health advocacy. The brand currently retails 5 products that seamlessly bridge the gap between clinical and cool.

 In the COMMUNITY category, the USD 5,000 prize for the best community engagement was awarded to Rahul Shah, Yaan Man. As a new-age skincare brand, Yaan Man is all set to break societal taboos surrounding men and their relationship with skincare and makeup through clean and conscious products that are innovative, derived from nature and engineered for performance.

“The debut edition of our program has witnessed stellar response from new and emerging brands,” said Anchit Nayar, Chief Executive Officer, E-commerce Beauty, Nykaa. “From tapping science and nature to impeccable consumer insight, the entries and finalists showed us the immense potential of beauty brands in India who are gearing up to win consumer’s hearts. This is only the beginning of this journey with the new generation of beauty entrepreneurs in Indiaand we are looking forward to building the future of beauty together.“

“We are so proud of all the finalists who each represented a unique vision for beauty in India and beauty for modern consumers everywhere,” said Shana Randhava, Senior Vice President, New Incubation Ventures, The Estée Lauder Companies notes. “The three winners – Skinvest, Bahut Beauty and Yaan Man – crafted concepts and businesses that inspired and excited us as to what the future of our industry holds. We look forward to working with them to support their groundbreaking ideas.“

The winners will benefit from access to ELC and Nykaa relationships and expertise across the beauty ecosystem to nurture emerging ideas that amplify Indian voices and address unmet consumer needs. Among other resources, Beauty&You India will provide award winners with financial support, continued mentorship, increased awareness, and distribution support.