Tata Group enters the mass beauty market with the launch of ‘Zudio Beauty,’ offering a wide range of affordable beauty products for all. Trent, where Noel Tata is the chairman, also enters a new retail format with ‘Zudio Beauty’. According to the reports, the ‘Zudio Beauty’ venture would do battle with brands such as Elle18 from Hindustan Unilever, Sugar Cosmetics, Health & Glow, and Colorbar. It is well-positioned to capitalize on a fast-growing economy looking for mass beauty products, which Reliance, Nykaa, and Shoppers Stop have cornered with premium and luxury offerings.
Industry sources indicate that Zudio Beauty has launched its first store in Bengaluru and will expand it to major cities like Gurugram, Pune, and Hyderabad. Tata already has a presence in the beauty space through Tata Cliq Palette, a premium cosmetics store format—India’s first beauty brand, Lakme, later sold to Hindustan Unilever The affordable apparel brand from Trent—Zudio—has done well since it was launched in FY17.
Launched as an offering within Star, Zudio has grown fast and is not very gross margin-intensive at 35-40%, which means very store-efficient. Double the industry average, its revenue per square foot is at Rs 16,300. Zudio was spun off into a separate format in FY18 and now contributes to over one-third of Trent’s total revenue.
By FY22, Zudio had crossed Westside in store count and was way ahead of the latter in revenue by FY24. The brand has already led in the value retail segment, with 559 Zudio stores across the country as of June, with more in the pipeline. According to industry experts, Trent’s success here would also be repeated in the beauty space.
Abneesh Roy, executive director at Nuvama, said, “This is the next disrupting move by Trent after the value apparel and if the quality clicks in with the consumers, this will be their next big win.” Competitors in the beauty space, particularly those closer to Nykaa, may have issues, and the move might affect fast-moving consumer goods players as well, he added.
Global players such as L’Oreal and Shiseido are eyeing the country as a promising avenue for growth. L’Oreal has already enlisted India as its fifth largest market for professional products, and Shiseido has tied up with Shoppers Stop to introduce its premium Nars Cosmetics brand into Indian markets.
They expect that market share will expand by about 9% from the present 33% within the next five years. According to a report released by Redseer Strategy Consultants and Peak XV, indigenous players like Hindustan Unilever and Procter & Gamble stand to lose 900 basis points in their combined market share because of the expanding market share of specialty beauty brands such as L’Oreal, Mama Earth, Nivea, and Nykaa. With over 550 stores currently in operation, the researchers at Citi Research believe the company has more than enough scope for growth and an even further expansion into the beauty side is expected in the future. This strategic move positions Tata Group and Zudio Beauty to capture a significant share of the growing beauty sector while making quality products accessible to a broader audience.
Tata Group enters mass beauty market with ‘Zudio Beauty’ store launch
