The Estée lauder x Nykaa Beauty & You finalists are here!

Ismat Tahseen

This festive season, if you’re looking to pick up the best in homegrown beauty, take a cue from a much-coveted list, which will be out in November, courtesy the Estée lauder x Nykaa program. Called BEAUTY&YOU, this can become a game-changer for skincare and make-up aficionados, entrepreneurs and the entire beauty ecosystem in India.

‘Women represented 68% of this year’s applicant pool’

Here’s a peek into what the collaboration has brought about. Created by ELC’s New Incubation Ventures and first launched in partnership with Nykaa in July 2022 with the aim to discover, spotlight and propel the next generation of Indian beauty brands, the second edition of BEAUTY&YOU invited founders, innovators and creators to apply for the award and an opportunity to compete not only for prize money, but also for learning and mentorship by leading industry experts. Totally, 27 companies/creatives in four categories have been selected through a competitive application process. As per statistics, it is interesting to see that women represented 68% of this year’s applicant pool as founders. Also, 62% of the applicants have a sustainability mission statement and what’s more, skincare emerged as the largest category.

The program is also shuffling the norm for several reasons. For one, unlike traditional funding programs, this one demands zero equity, placing complete ownership with entrepreneurs and giving them unlimited access to mentorship.

Brand, product and marketing, and investment experts from ELC and Nykaa have reviewed the entire application pool and shortlisted the most promising brands.

HERE’S A LOOK AT THE FINALISTS
The finalists represent a variety of concepts ranging from breakthrough product innovation to wellness-led concepts and new experiential storytelling. 

● IMAGINE (pre-launch businesses)
·  Ādikriyā, Aditi Mundra & Riya Ranka, Co-Founders
·  AMANAURA, Aman Dahele, Founder
·  Baboski , Hetali Kamdar, Founder
·  DR SONIA MD, Dr. Sonia Badreshia, Founder
·  Havah, Giti Datt, Founder

●  GROW (in-market businesses)
○  Beautywise, Anousha Chauhan and Shreyansh Chauhan, Founders
○  Dearist, Meher Jadwani, Founder
○  Flossy Cosmetics, Sanshi Aggarwal, CEO
○  Call of the Valley, Jean-Christophe Bonnafous, Founder
○  Glutaweis Cosmetics, Khayl Lalani, CEO and Co-Founder and Karim Lalani, President and Co-Founder
○  MEGAGLOW, Shenai Bridglall, Founder
○  SkinQ, Dr Chytra Anand, Founder & Chief Formulator and Meera Iyer, CEO and Co-Founder
○  vēr वेर , Sanchaya Soundhar, Founder

● BREAKTHROUGH (Innovation / R&D)
○  Adapté, Surabhi Nimkar, Roshni Jaura and Vedant Hood, Co-Founders
○  Biome Laboratories, Rhea Goenka, CEO and Founder
○  C16 Biosciences, Shara Ticku, CEO and Founder
○  Jasmine Concrete Exports Private Limited, Raja Palaniswamy, Director
○  Keva Fragrances, Flavours & Aroma Ingredients, Kedar Vaze, CEO and Director and Dr. Avani Mainkar, Chief Scientific Officer
○  Sohrai, Khanak Gupta and Rupesh Pawar, Co-Founders
○  Waleria Healthtech Pvt Ltd, Komal Baldwa, CEO and Founder

●  CREATE (Creative Talents)
○  Diya Ahuja, Creative Director / Stylist
○  Nishanth Radhakrishnan (Fashion and Documentary Photographer), Shivani Joshi (Beauty Artist), James Lalthanzuala (Fashion Stylist)
○  Doyel Joshi and Neil Balser, Artists and Co-Founders, Howareyoufeeling.studio
○  Priya Minhas, Director
○  Henry DaCosta, Director
○  Sachin Gogna, Fashion & Celebrity Stylist
○  Furmaan Ahmed, Photographer & Artist

‘This year’s finalists represent an incredibly diverse group of talent’
The finalists represent a variety of concepts ranging from breakthrough product innovation to wellness-led concepts and new experiential storytelling. It’s going to be thrilling to see who makes the final cut!

Shana Randhava, Senior Vice President, New Incubation Ventures, The Estée Lauder Companies notes, “This year’s finalists represent an incredibly diverse group of talent reflecting the whole beauty ecosystem – from innovative founders and R&D experts to creative photographers, filmmakers and experiential artists. Similar to last year, we are heartened that these founders have created ventures that speak to the broader role of beauty in our lives—whether supporting local communities or developing breakthrough sustainability approaches. We are inspired by their insightful views on the global opportunity for Indian-led concepts and businesses. We are excited for the world they are creating.”

Adds Anchit Nayar, Executive Director, CEO, Beauty, Nykaa, “The beauty ecosystem in India is witnessing the rise of the next generation of entrepreneurs and home grown brands that will fuel innovation and category growth for years to come. We at NYKAA along with Estee Lauder have always been committed to finding ways to give young brands of the future a chance to scale, and serve the community, and BEAUTY&YOU is the culmination of this mission of ours. We are excited to see all the winners scale new heights in the coming years.”

All eyes on November 2
Meanwhile, it’s going to be an eager countdown to the finale. On November 2, 2023, finalists will present their final company presentation to the BEAUTY&YOU jury of celebrities including Katrina Kaif, Bhumi Pednekar, Anaita Shroff Adajania, Gaurav Gupta and others.

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