As the beauty and wellness industries grow increasingly interconnected, Ayurveda is stepping into the spotlight. Of course, there’s nothing new about the 5,000-year-old holistic philosophy: Ayurveda is rooted in traditional Indian beauty rituals like hair oiling and other practices (yoga, meditation, turmeric lattes) that have gradually been embraced by the West. Now, Ayurveda-centric beauty brands are bringing tried-and-true rituals and ingredients into the modern age and attracting younger consumers across the U.S.
Two years ago, former fashion and beauty editor Nikita Charuza set out to launch her own brand grounded in the Ayurvedic traditions she had learned from the women in her family. Aiming to make Ayurveda approachable to a wider audience, she created Squigs, a skin- and hair-care brand named after Charuza’s affectionate nickname for her sister. It currently offers two SKUs — Gooseberry Delight Hair Oil ($34) and Double Shot Face Serum ($28) — utilizing classic Ayurvedic ingredients such as gooseberry (amla oil) in its hair oil, and turmeric, neem and tulsi in its serum. With colorful, confetti-adorned packaging, Squigs is tapping into a predominantly Gen-Z and millennial consumer base.
“I wanted to show the consumer you can have a beauty product that looks super fun and still be very efficacious due to the ingredients that have been around for 5,000-plus years as well,” Charuza tells Fashionista.
Photo: Courtesy of Squigs
Photo: Courtesy of Squigs
The brand aims to reach its younger audience through vibrant packaging and branding, yes, but also with relatable messaging similar to how Charuza used to talk with her friends while she was growing up. By breaking down how to use Squigs’ products through its website and social media channels, the brand seeks to present younger consumers with a simplified, multi-use approach to Ayurvedic products. “I think having that open conversation, telling them what those ingredients are and handling it in that approachable manner just makes people feel more comfortable,” Charuza says.
Ranavat — a luxury Ayurvedic beauty brand founded by Michelle Ranavat in 2017 — also champions the idea that “Ayurveda is for everyone.” Available at Sephora, the brand’s skin and hair offerings including a Brightening Saffron Serum, a $135 oil-based serum boosted by saffron, turmeric and lotus flower for targeting dark spots and fine lines. Though Ranavat is planted in the luxury category, its founder notes that the brand connects with new and existing customers alike through its social media channels by sharing Ayurvedic education and DIY recipes for consumers to “engage with the brand at any age or any price point.”
“No matter where people are on the spectrum of discovering Ayurveda for their beauty routine, they can always find a home on our page and feel included in the narrative,” Ranavat continues.
Photo: Courtesy of Ranavat
With so much competition for Gen Z’s attention, Ayurvedic beauty brands are predominantly reaching the younger generation by meeting them where they already are: on TikTok and Instagram. Ranavat shares TikToks revealing the behind-the-scenes process of processing saffron for its beloved serum, while Squigs posts quick how-tos and videos set to trending TikTok sounds.
Sahajan, an Ayurvedic skin-care brand founded by Lisa Mattam in 2015, enlists its own Gen-Z team members to help with social media. Though Sahajan’s existing customer base leans more mature, its trendy TikToks (see: Charli XCX’s “Apple” dance and “POV” skits) are reaching a younger audience interested in wellness. TikTok has even influenced the brand’s product offerings: Following a viral video of Mattam explaining the brightening benefits of ghee (clarified butter that she claims can help reduce the look of dark undereye circles), some viewers expressed interest in the Ayurvedic ingredient and Mattam began working on what is now Sahajan’s Golden Glow Eye Balm ($52).
“Gen Z is getting into their wellness so much earlier, and they’re really helping to direct the world of wellness because they’ve created this wellness environment,” Mattam says. “So for me, TikTok is an incredible way that we talk to them, and they’ve inspired our product development.”
Photo: Courtesy of Sahajan
Social media has also been pivotal within Ayurvedic hair-care brand Fable & Mane‘s Gen-Z marketing efforts. Co-founded by siblings Akash and Nikita Mehta in 2020, Fable & Mane has built a following of 198,000 on Instagram and nearly 85,000 on TikTok by utilizing “bite-sized content” and holding conversations with actual Gen-Z consumers about what they want to see from the brand.
“Those open conversations have been quite game-changing for us,” Akash says. “So I think it’s about not just being comfortable, but always listening and always growing and using as many Gen Z talent in our 360 universe when we create something. But at the same time, it’s also knowing when to listen and when not to because we have other audiences.”
Along with speaking directly with Gen Zers on the back end, Fable & Mane is putting the demographic front and center in its marketing by tapping actor Avantika Vandanapu to star in the brand’s latest campaign for its HoliRoots Hair Oil ($38). Combining “timeless beauty with modernity,” the campaign illustrates a contemporary twist on Urvashi, an apsara (celestial nymph) from the epic Indian fable “Ramayana,” with Avantika stepping in as “the goddess of great hair.”
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Since many Gen Zers came of age amid the “clean” beauty movement, both Mattam and Ranavat note that younger beauty consumers are entering the market with a broader baseline of skin-care knowledge. Therefore, they often don’t need as much introductory education when it comes to marketing.
“Before, it’s like people didn’t even know what a vitamin C was and what it was used for, so you really had to provide five layers of education before you could get to the meat,” Ranavat says. “And now, with the level of knowledge that [younger consumers] have, you just go right into what makes your product different and I think that allows us to tell more interesting parts of the story because, as a new brand, you really can’t get there until people understand those first layers.”
Beyond product marketing, some Ayurvedic beauty brands are also capturing younger consumers’ attention through their own purpose-driven advocacy. Fable & Mane established The Fable Fund to support local conservation initiatives and restore the habitats of wild tigers, while Squigs donates a percentage of its proceeds to mental health charities. Dubbed “happy headcare,” Squigs’ mission champions caring for what’s inside your head in addition to the skin on your face and scalp.
To that end, Squigs has hosted Bollywood dance classes, yoga classes, water painting sessions and breath work sessions in tandem with promoting its two-product lineup. These types of IRL activities — including Fable & Mane’s Diwali celebrations and Sahajan’s yoga events — help bring Ayurveda to the masses and reach Gen-Z beauty consumers through community-building channels.
“[Ayurveda] really does fit into a lot of the ethics, the sustainability, the ethical living, mindfulness, veganism, which often is in the Gen-Z world,” Akash says. “I think that’s why, when I mention the word ‘Ayurveda’ to a Gen Z and then I explain what it is, they’re like, ‘I already do this’ or ‘I love it. This is me.'”
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Source: Fashionista.com
