Lakm Cosmetics

Lakm is
an
Indian cos
metics br
and which
is owned
by Hindus
tan
Unilever a
nd run by
CEO
Puskharaj
Shenai.
Having Sh
raddha
Kapoor as
the

Industry-Personal care
Founded-1952
Founder-J. R. D. Tata
Headquarters-India
Key

people-Sanjiv Mehta (CEO Unilever)

Pushkaraj Shenai(CEO Lakm)

Purnima Lamba (Head Innovations)

Shraddha Kapoor(ambassador)[1]
ProductsCosmetics, beauty products, and Salon services
Website-lakmeindia.com

ambassador, it ranked at number 1 among the cosmetics brands in India.

[2][3]
Lakme started as a 100% subsidiary of Tata Oil Mills (Tomco). It was
named after the French opera Lakm, which itself is the French form
ofLakshmi (the goddess of wealth) who is renowned for her beauty. It was
started in 1952 famously, because the Prime Minister Jawaharlal
Nehru was concerned that Indian women were spending precious foreign
exchange on beauty products and personally requested JRD Tata to
manufacture them in India.[4] Simone Tata joined the company as director
and went on to become the chairperson.[5] In 1996, Tata sold off their
stakes in Lakm Lever to HLL, for Rs 200 Crore[6](45 million US$).
In the Brand Trust Report 2012, Lakme was ranked 104th among India's
most trusted brands and following the next year it was ranked 71st among
India's most trusted brands. In 2014, Lakme was ranked 36th among
India's most trusted brands according to the Brand Trust Report 2014.
[7]
The company is the title sponsor for Lakme Fashion Week (LFW) a biannual fashion event which takes place in Mumbai.[8]

Lakm:
It was the early 1950s. India had just
won her freedom and the economy
was shaky. Upper middle class
women were spending valuable
foreign exchange on western
cosmetics while the more middle
class women had no access to quality
makeup because of non-availability in
the Indian market. Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru approached JRD
Tata to come up with a solution.

Tata, the always hungry entrepreneur, took on the challenge ecstatically.

The biggest difficulty was coming up with a brand identity that appealed
to both classes of women. He settled on Lakm, taking the name from the
French opera of the same name. Funnily the name is a western take on
the Indian goddess of wealth Lakshmi. But, as this article puts it, Lakshmi
lipstick or Lakshmi kajal would never have worked with the Indian ladies
who were used to buying foreign cosmetics.

This being the first time an Indian cosmetic

company was being founded, extensive market
research went into determining the needs of the
Indian skin and colour. Experts were hired from
every field. In 1952 Lakm started as a 100 per
cent subsidiary of Tata Oil Mills. Simone Tata, the
French wife of Naval H. Tata, joined as managing
director in 1961 and rose to become its chairman
in 1982. Being a western born woman who had
made India her home, she understood the core
formula of the brand and was instrumental in
shaping Lakm into the household name that it became. She was
appointed to the board of Tata Industries in 1989.
Observing the rapid growth in the retail sector, Tata sold Lakm to
Hindustan Unilever in 1996 for 200 crores. They imagined that a dedicated
FMGC company would be able to do better justice to the brand.

Why was the cosmetics company named Lakm?

Way back in the early 1950s, an economic survey of spending in India
revealed that Indian women were splurging on imported cosmetics. Nehru
was not very happy because it was affecting the forex reserves.
Maintaining the forex reserves was of utmost importance considering the
fact that Indian economy was still in its nascent stage. Nehru hit upon the
idea of a home grown beauty brand which would cater to cosmetic needs
of Indian women.
(Although some sources claim that Nehru took up this issue because a
certain womens association approached him to put forward their
concerns about non-availability of affordable beauty products. But having
studied about Nehrus visions and views, I am of the opinion that he had
considered beauty products as luxury and would have never spent any
time/effort to satisfy those womens luxurious needs. Instead, he took up
the issue because it was affecting forex and related to the economy.

Banning such products was impossible in a democracy, so starting an

Indian company was the only solution.)
It was a challenge of its kind because it
had to fulfill the needs of Indian skin in
which foreign brands fell short and at the
same time, have a brand identity which
would appeal to the upper middle class
women who were really the ones
splurging on expensive foreign branded
cosmetics.
Nehru knew that only JRD Tata had the passion and entrepreneurship skills
to tackle the above challenges and personally requested him to come up
with a solution, which he readily accepted.

A ticket of Lakme Opera

Doing market research to find out
the needs of Indian women and
hiring experts & chemical engineers
from the beauty industry was not
really a challenge for JRD but coming
up with a brand identity certainly
was. Finally, after giving it a lot of
thought, he named it Lakm after
the French Opera.
The reason he chose this particular
French opera name was because
Lakm derives its name from
Sanskrit for Lakshmi, the goddess
of wealth and epitome of beauty. It
was the perfect name for the
company as it was actually bringing
wealth to the nation (by saving
precious forex), could correlate itself
very well with the beautiful Goddess and it appealed well to upper middle
class women due to its videshi sounding name (Lakshmi lipstick or
Lakshmi eyeliner would have sounded very desi).

That was the kind of thought process

which went into any job which JRD Tata
took up and the results were always
exemplary. Lakme was started in 1952
as a 100% subsidiary of Tata oil mill. It
was a hugely successful brand and the
rest is history. In 1996, Tata sold its
stake in Lakme to HLL since it felt that
HLL being an FMCG company will do
better justice to the company and HLL
have continued to efficiently nurture
the brainchild of JRD. A recent survey
ranked Lakme to be one of the top 50
most trusted brands in India.
Creating through hair care

Lakm is a company inspired

by beauty. Hair is a
fundamental element of our
personality. Health, wellbeing
and the search for our own
personal look are the essential
values that guide us towards
the hairs natural beauty.
With the development of our
products, we aim to bring these values to fruition in hairdressing, through
professional creativity and the infinite possibilities that hair provides.

Since 1996

Lakm is the fruit of our experience, passion and knowledge in

the field of cosmetic research. A team of professionals with one
goal in common: to devote our efforts to building this ambitious

project, bringing our vision of

hairdressing to the
development of haircare and
beauty products.
Lakm was founded by a family
group that has been associated
with the world of hairdressing for
several generations. The company
established as its first objective the
search for maximum quality and
the provision of added value to its
range of products.
Right at the beginning, Lakm set
up a high-tech laboratory and since
then it has been characterized by its innovative spirit, technical excellence
and international profile.
Lakm very soon won widespread recognition. Professionals appreciate
the quality of its products, reflected in both its commitment to customer
service and the high level of the design and packaging.
Mediterranean inspiration
With its laboratories in Barcelona, Lakm displays its enthusiasm

for Mediterranean values. Artistic tradition, ties with nature and

the culture of knowledge exchange are attributes of our company
that favour beauty, hair health, and innovation.
Mediterranean values are now recognized as the epitome of balance and
well-being. Lakm is the ambassador of this lifestyle with its open, restless
and multicultural character.

International market
In Lakm we have successfully
developed a brand with clear
international vocation, renowned for
the quality of its products, its close
working relationship with
professionals from around the world
and their innovative contributions on
application techniques.
At the present time the Lakm brand boasts
over 300 products, used in professional hair
salons in over 70 countries around the
world and present each year at the most
important international fairs. Thanks to the intense research into new
formulas, techniques and styles, inspired by the latest advances in
international hairstyling, it is a company
in expansion.

Lakm laboratories
A space covering 6,000 sq. m.
devoted to a mission: hair health and
beauty. Our R+D department is the
driving force of the company. It is
where future Lakm products are
researched, developed and
formulated.
The highest standards at all manufacturing stages. From research into hair
health, to the exploration of new application techniques, to product
design, the selection of raw materials and a special system of formulation.
Lakm is noted for its technical excellence in all these stages, guaranteed
by the strictest management standards ISO EC-0838/02 and GMP (Good
Manufacturing Practices).

LAKM Inspired Haircare

A family of entrepreneurs who one day launched an ambitious project to
create high-quality haircare products, with the aim of contributing a new
vision to the global market of hairstyling professionals.

A decade later, the Lakm project has reached extraordinary levels: our
products are sold on the five continents and our way of understanding
haircare and beauty is becoming a point of reference.
We are witnesses to a society that is more and more expert every day and
which examines both the excellence of the products and the values of the
brands. We are satisfied to see that the clients of hair salons on the five
continents identify more and more closely with our ideals: the search for
hair beauty through health, the therapeutic potential of the natural
ingredients, the potential of a cosmetic that assimilates the characteristics
of each hair fiber, the cultural heritage of the Mediterranean and the
recognition of the worlds ethnic and social diversity.
Our next challenge is to maintain our total commitment to these values
and continue to meet the demands of our great international team of
professionals. We believe in the potential for interaction of our stylists,
constantly en route between the great capitals of fashion and innovation.
Now, it is a question of fomenting this source of inspiration and knowing
how to make the most of its capacity to generate ideas. Because in ideas
lie the seeds of what the profession will be like in the future.

Lakme is an ally to the Indian Woman and inspires her to express

her unique beauty and sensuality. Thus, enabling her to realize
the potency of her beauty.
Contemporary Indian beauty expert Lakm continuously innovates to offer
a wide range of high performance and world class color cosmetics,
skincare products, and beauty salons. Combining international cosmetic
technology with an in-depth understanding of the Indian womans needs,
Lakm also offers its consumers a comprehensive beauty experience
through its products and services at the Lakm Salons and Studios.

Key Facts
Lakme was the country's first cosmetic brand to introduce make up
to Indian women and takes pride in being the expert on Indian Beauty for
over 50 years.
It is a complete beauty brand spanning colour cosmetics & skin care
and extending to beauty services through the network of Lakme Beauty
Salons.

Its bond with beauty and fashion is manifested through the Lakme
Fashion Week, which is now the largest fashion event of its kind in the
country.