L’Oréal has announced the acquisition of a majority stake in Innovist, one of India’s fastest-growing digital-first personal care companies, marking one of the most significant beauty investment moves in the Indian market in recent years. The acquisition brings popular science-led brands Bare Anatomy and Chemist at Play into L’Oréal’s Consumer Products Division portfolio, significantly strengthening the French beauty giant’s presence among India’s digitally savvy, ingredient-conscious consumers.
Founded in 2019 by Rohit Chawla, Sifat Khurana, and Vimal Bhola, Innovist has built its reputation on clean formulations, transparent ingredient communication, and strong in-house research and development capabilities. Its brands are available across direct-to-consumer platforms, major ecommerce and quick commerce channels, and offline retail partnerships nationwide, making it one of the most accessible and recognised homegrown personal care houses in India.
Under the terms of the agreement, Innovist’s founding team will remain in place as minority shareholders and continue to operate and scale the business in collaboration with L’Oréal India. L’Oréal has also secured rights to acquire the remaining minority stake at a future date. The transaction is expected to close within the next few months, subject to regulatory approvals.
The acquisition reflects L’Oréal’s accelerating commitment to India as a strategic growth market. CEO Nicolas Hieronimus described the investment as a testament to the company’s conviction in India’s beauty potential, highlighting the alignment between L’Oréal’s global scientific expertise and Innovist’s deep understanding of the Indian consumer.
For India’s professional beauty and personal care industry, the deal signals a broader trend of global beauty majors moving beyond distribution partnerships to direct ownership of homegrown Indian brands. As digitally native, science-led brands continue to gain significant consumer trust and market share, Innovist’s acquisition by L’Oréal underlines the growing global value being placed on India’s new generation of ingredient-transparent, research-driven beauty brands.
