Key takeaways
- India is emerging as a global beauty powerhouse, driven by diversity and innovation.
- Five forces define its market: science-meets-heritage, tech-powered retail, climate-adaptive beauty, community-led influence, and sustainability.
- Global brands are looking to India for inspiration on speed, authenticity and cultural relevance.
To compile the report, The Future Laboratory’s beauty, health and wellness analysts interviewed leading Indian beauty experts, including Shruti Thacker, co-founder of Indian youth culture platform The Established; Udhav Kumar, digital commerce lead at The Estée Lauder Companies, India; Rajvi Bhow, India’s brand director for Clinique, The Ordinary and Dr Jart+; Radhika Ghai, founder of beauty and wellness app Kindlife; Nikita Khanna, founder of Moxie Beauty; Rhea Sugwekar, cosmetics regulatory specialist; and Akash Das, director of foresight at MeWeStudioX.
According to Olivia Houghton, insights and engagement director at The Future Laboratory, the Indian beauty market thrives on complexity. “Its vast diversity – across language, culture, climate and lifestyle – creates highly nuanced consumer expectations,” she said. “The industry is meeting this challenge with agility and innovation, creating solutions that feel personal and relevant to millions.”
Meanwhile, Madeleine Boyd, global senior vice-president of beauty and wellness at Together Group, said the beauty market in India is “both highly nuanced and fragmented.”
What’s defining India’s beauty landscape?
The report identifies five defining forces shaping the beauty industry in India:
Science and heritage
Ayurveda is being reinterpreted through modern science. Traditional beauty knowledge, rituals, botanicals and practices are merging with clinical innovation to create products that celebrate cultural tradition and scientific advancement.
Tech-powered retail
India is fast becoming a global reference point for technology-led beauty retail. AI-driven curation and Quick Commerce are growing rapidly, helping consumers discover and receive products with unprecedented speed and convenience.
Climate-adaptive beauty
As weather becomes harsher, beauty routines increasingly focus on prevention and protection. Consumers are turning to SPF and skin barrier products to guard against heat, pollution, UV exposure and unpredictable monsoon patterns. This trend is driving strong growth in suncare and protective formulations.
Community-led influence
Younger generations seek authentic, education-led content from peers rather than celebrity endorsements. “India is setting important benchmarks for the future of beauty by showing how innovation can be both high-tech and deeply human,” said Houghton. “From Q-commerce models that transform cultural inspiration into instant access, to decentralised influence networks rooted in trust and micro-communities, the market is redefining what speed, authenticity and engagement look like – and in doing so, it’s writing a playbook that global beauty brands are already taking notes from.”
Sustainability and circularity
Beauty shoppers expect brands to be transparent about how they integrate sustainability and circularity into products and supply chains. Younger generations reward brands that embed responsibility into product design, packaging and communication.
