L'Oréal takes majority stake in Innovist as India beauty M&A wave accelerates
L'Oréal India is buying control of D2C house Innovist (Bare Anatomy, Chemist at Play, Sunscoop) to revive growth that slipped to 5% in FY25 from 14%. Innovist hit Rs 301 cr revenue (+182%) and turned profitable. Deal mirrors HUL-Minimalist and EL-Forest Essentials as MNCs race for digital-first share of a $34bn BPC market by 2028.
What happened
L'Oréal India · L'Oréal is acquiring a majority stake in Indian D2C beauty startup Innovist (Bare Anatomy, Chemist at Play, Sunscoop) to revive slowing India
Key facts
- Innovist FY25 revenue Rs 301 cr (+182%)
- FY25 net profit Rs 12.5 cr vs loss Rs 11.9 cr
- L'Oréal India sales growth 5% FY25 vs 14% FY24
- L'Oréal India revenue <Rs 6,000 cr
- India = ~1% of L'Oréal global sales
- India BPC market $20bn to $34bn by 2028
- Series A $7M (2023)
- Series B Rs 136 cr
Why this matters
This is the third major MNC-D2C beauty deal in India in quick succession, signaling a closing window to acquire scaled, profitable digital-native brands before remaining targets get bid up or locked into exclusivity.