Launching a haircare brand in India is an exciting venture filled with immense opportunities, but it also requires deep planning, compliance, and strategy. As the haircare market in India continues to boom, with rising consumer awareness, demand for clean ingredients, and custom hair care formulation, starting a haircare brand in 2025 means entering a fast-growing and competitive landscape.
In this expert-backed guide, we’ll walk you through every step of how to start a haircare brand in India, from ideation to formulation to marketing. Whether you’re an aspiring beauty founder, a salon owner planning a private label extension, or a wellness entrepreneur, this guide will help you turn your idea into a successful product line.
Key Steps to Start a Haircare Brand in India
Learn how to create your own natural hair product line with the below steps:
- Identify your niche (hairfall, scalp health, styling, etc.)
- Build your brand story and values.
- Choose the right manufacturing model (private label or custom).
- Develop safe, high-performance formulations.
- Handle legal requirements and compliance.
- Plan branding, packaging, and pricing.
- Launch with a strong marketing and retail strategy.
Step 1: Identify Your Haircare Niche
India’s diverse hair types and regional concerns make it critical to define your niche.
Some high-potential segments include:
- Anti-hair fall treatments.
- Scalp-focused solutions (like dandruff, oil control, or sensitivity).
- Damage repair and hydration for colored or heat-damaged hair.
- Curly and textured hair products.
- Natural and Ayurvedic-inspired lines.
- Salon-exclusive ranges or styling products.
Before formulation, study your target audience’s pain points, habits, and ingredient awareness. At Clean Beauty, our clients often start with one core product line, such as a strengthening shampoo and nourishing conditioner, before expanding.
Step 2: Build Your Brand Story & Identity
A compelling brand story goes beyond aesthetics; it’s what builds trust.
Outline your:
- Brand mission and values (clean beauty, science-backed, heritage-based, etc.)
- Visual identity (logo, colours, fonts, photography style).
- Tone of voice (technical, luxurious, playful, rooted).
Make sure your story resonates with your niche. For instance, a science-led scalp care brand would use clinical, minimalist language, while a natural curl-care brand may lean into warmth and inclusivity.
At Clean Beauty Private Limited, we support founders in aligning product and brand tone right from the prototype stage.
Step 3: Choose a Manufacturing Model
You can choose between:
- Private Label Manufacturing: Select from ready-to-market formulas with your own branding. Best for faster go-to-market.
- Custom Haircare Formulation: Work with an R&D team to develop unique products from scratch. Ideal if you want innovation or IP ownership.
Our team at Clean Beauty offers both. Clients can white-label best-sellers like:
- FortiFix Conditioner (damage repair).
- Flakes Away Shampoo (anti-dandruff).
- Plumpify Shampoo (volume boosting).
- Halo Hair Elixir (nourishing scalp oil).
Or, we help co-develop formulas tailored to your hero ingredients and efficacy goals.
Step 4: Develop Safe, High-Performance Formulas
Your formulations must:
- Solve a real concern (e.g., breakage, frizz, flakes).
- Use effective ingredients (like peptides, AHAs, niacinamide, apple stem cells, clays, or botanicals).
- Comply with BIS standards and ingredient safety regulations.
You’ll also need to choose between:
- Sulfate-free vs mild sulfates.
- Silicone-free vs smoothening agents.
- Natural preservatives vs synthetic blends.
At Clean Beauty, all our formulations are tested for pH, stability, and safety. We also help clients decide which formats are best: shampoo bars, creamy butters, liquid cleansers, hair oils, or serums.
Step 5: Register Your Business & Meet Legal Requirements
To launch your brand in India, you need:
- Company Registration (sole proprietorship, partnership, or private limited).
- GST Registration.
- BIS Product Compliance (especially for rinse-off and leave-on products).
- Label Compliance with CDSCO and Drugs & Cosmetics Rules.
- Manufacturer Agreements and NDAs.
At Clean Beauty, we ensure clients receive complete COAs, batch testing, and documentation to stay compliant from day one.
Step 6: Design Branding & Packaging
Packaging matters as much as product.
Consider:
- Label design (claims, usage, ingredients, QR codes).
- Container type (bottles, jars, pouches, bars).
- Sustainability (refills, recyclable, biodegradable options).
- Unboxing experience (especially for D2C brands).
We help clients create design-ready templates for both primary and secondary packaging. Custom printing, foil stamping, matte finishes, and pouch refill systems are popular with Clean Beauty clients.
Step 7: Plan Your Launch Strategy
Don’t wait till the product is ready to start planning your go-to-market.
Build pre-launch buzz through:
- Instagram teasers and waitlists.
- Influencer sampling.
- Educational content (e.g., scalp care tips, ingredient spotlights).
Post-launch, focus on:
- D2C website sales.
- Retail/distributor partnerships.
- Marketplace listings (Amazon, Nykaa, etc.)
- PR and sampling campaigns.
Build credibility through user testimonials, before-and-after content, dermatologist endorsements, and consistent storytelling.
Cost of Starting a Haircare Brand in India:
Costs vary based on scale, but key expenses include:
- R&D and formulation development.
- Manufacturing and packaging (MOQs start at 500 – 1000 units at Clean Beauty).
- Branding and design.
- Website and e-commerce setup.
- Marketing and influencer outreach.
A realistic starting budget can range from ₹4 – ₹10 lakhs for small-batch launches. Ask about flexible MOQs and scaled pricing during manufacturer discussions.
How Clean Beauty Supports Haircare Entrepreneurs:
At Clean Beauty Private Limited, we’re more than a hair care line manufacturer; we’re a growth partner.
Here’s how we help:
- Custom Formulation and R&D: with natural or high-performance actives.
- Private Label Haircare Range (conditioners, shampoos, masks, serums, scalp oils, and bars).
- Packaging, Sourcing & Compliance support.
- Brand Strategy Inputs to align formulation with your story.
- Flexible MOQ Models for early-stage brands.
Whether you’re starting a curly haircare brand or a scalp-focused Ayurvedic line, we help you build it from the ground up.
Final Thoughts
Starting a haircare brand in India is no longer just about bottles and labels; it’s about vision, trust, and real efficacy. In 2025, consumers expect transparency, thoughtful formulation, and meaningful branding. With the right partner, your idea can bloom into a line that empowers, heals, and makes a mark.
Clean Beauty is a hair care products manufacturer that will support you in every step of your brand journey. From your first shampoo to a full-scale haircare line, let’s build something beautiful together.
FAQs
1. What licenses do I need to start a haircare brand in India?
You’ll need company registration, GST, and CDSCO-compliant product labelling. If you’re working with a third-party manufacturer like Clean Beauty, they handle product licenses and batch certifications for you.
2. Can I start a haircare brand without a science background?
Yes. Many successful founders come from marketing, design, or wellness backgrounds. What matters is your vision, a reliable manufacturer, and consumer understanding.
3. What are the best-selling haircare formats for Indian audiences?
Shampoos and conditioners dominate, but shampoo bars, scalp oils, and hair serums are growing fast, especially among eco-conscious and urban consumers.
4. What is the MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity) to start with Clean Beauty?
We offer flexible MOQs starting from 500 – 1000 units, depending on the product format and packaging choice. This helps startups launch lean and scale sustainably.
5. Can I customise formulations with specific ingredients like keratin or niacinamide?
Absolutely. We offer custom R&D support to build formulations around your chosen actives, hair goals, and fragrance preferences.
6. Does Clean Beauty help with packaging and branding?
Yes. While we don’t directly do design, we support clients with packaging development, material sourcing, and guidance on label copy, compliance, and visual consistency.
