Mamaearth and The Derma Co's parent company Honasa Consumer has acquired a majority stake in skincare brand Dr. Sheth's.

WHO: Founded in 2017 by Dr. Aneesh Sheth, Dr. Sheth's is a skincare brand that creates products primarily for the Indian market addressing skin problems such as acne, pigmentation, dry skin, and aging. The brand is led by three generations, namely Dr. Sharat C. Desai, Dr. Rekha Sheth, and Dr. Aneesh Sheth. It sells products through its D2C website and various other ecommerce marketplaces.

Mamaearth was founded in 2016 by husband-and-wife duo Varun and Ghazal Alagh as Asia's first made-safe certified brand. It offers free and natural skincare, haircare, and baby care products for the Indian market. Mamaearth products are sold on major e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Nykaa, and Flipkart, as well as over 2,000 multi-brand stores across 40 cities in the country.

WHY: The fresh capital will be used to scale Dr. Sheth's business into an INR 100 Cr run rate brand in two years. The acquisition will help Honasa Consumer strengthen its position in the personal care segment.

IN THEIR OWN WORDS: Varun Alagh, co-founder and CEO, HPCL, said, "Dr Sheth's is a brand that is synonymous with heritage and legacy, and we are excited about this partnership as it will help us widen our portfolio offerings under the HCPL umbrella. It will be a symbiotic relationship wherein there will be knowledge sharing across brands and collaboratively build the brand and its product portfolio. Being a house of brands, Honasa Consumer Pvt Ltd has attained expertise in building millennial brands with a digital-first approach. We will utilise our expertise and proficiency in digital marketing to accelerate the growth and scale growth for Dr Sheth's and we are confident that we will make it a 100-crore run rate brand in 2 years. HCPL and Dr Sheth's synergise on fundamental ideologies of distinctive product innovation and strong millennial connect, we are confident this collaboration will be a success for consumers and for both brands."

Aneesh Sheth said, "We are very excited about the partnership with HCPL—they bring a level of operational excellence that will make our expertise and our products accessible to a wider community. Their experience as a house of brands will also help us optimise our innovation and bring about a great range of skincare that combines the best of both worlds—science and nature."

DETAILS:

• Mamaearth and The Derma Co's parent company Honasa Consumer has acquired a majority stake in skincare brand Dr. Sheth's at a valuation of INR 28 Cr. 
• As a part of the deal, Dr. Aneesh Sheth will continue to lead the business and product innovation.
• In December 2021 Mamaearth acquired an online content community for mothers, Momspresso, along with influencer platform Momspresso MyMoney, for an undisclosed amount. 
• In January, Mamaearth's parent company Honasa Consumer raised $52 million in a funding round led by Sequoia, reaching unicorn status with a valuation of US$1.2 billion. Other investors in the round included Sofina and Evolvence. 
• In July 2021 the company raised $50 million in a funding round led by Sofina Ventures, valuing it at $730 million.
• In January 2020, Mamaearth's parent company Honasa raised INR 130 Cr  ($18 million) in a Series B funding round.