Indians have amazing hair, but if one were to look closely at what gives the average Indian hair its distinct thickness, tensile strength, shine, and smoothness, the answer rests in the rich diet we have been taking for centuries — cereals, millets, vegetable oils, ghee, nuts and oilseeds.
However, with the rising stress levels, inadequate nutrition and numerous other factors combined, the Indian hair has started to lose its sheen — literally. Pertinent to note that while excessive stress is directly responsible for the premature greying of hair, a protein-deficient diet can result in hair loss. Also, common medical problems like anaemia and thyroid can make your hair thin and brittle, eventually leading to hair loss.
This is the primary reason why the country’s hair care market has evolved to become a $3 Bn opportunity in today’s hustle-first lifestyle. Until just a few years ago, before the Covid-19 pandemic wreaked havoc, mammoths like Procter & Gamble, Unilever, L’Oréal, Vatika, and Dabur ruled this market with an iron fist.
However, as Indians opened their eyes to a more health-conscious post-Covid era, a wave of D2C brands, including Pilgrim, Ravel Care, Mars by GHC (Good Health Company), and Bare Anatomy, formed a beeline to cater to their haircare needs, eventually flooding marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart and Nykaa with anything and everything related to hair oils, shampoos, serums, masks and even nutrition supplements for healthy hair.
Trying to distinguish itself with its comprehensive hair treatment solutions is a new kid on the block, Traya. Founded in 2019 by Saloni Anand and Altaf Saiyed, the D2C brand specialises in personalised hair care solutions, addressing individual customer hair issues through advanced technology.
“Although the market is saturated with hair care brands and countless products claiming to promote hair growth, none have delivered effective results. For us, the whitespace has been the entire hair care industry,” cofounder Saloni Anand said.
The startup integrates Ayurveda, Dermatology and Nutrition to treat hair loss. It operates via its app, website and major ecommerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart.
The founders claim to have served over 8 Lakh customers, with 70% of its consumer base residing in non-metro cities. The startup generated revenues to the tune of INR 61 Cr in FY23, as per the cofounders.
The startup has garnered significant interest from Xponentia Capital, Fireside Ventures, Kae Capital, Stride Ventures and Whiteboard Capital, raising INR 165 Cr since its inception.
In the competitive customised beauty and personal care market, Traya faces direct competition from brands like Arata, Vedix, SkinKraft, and Ravel Care.
How The Quest For Better Health Sparked Traya’s Inception?
Cofounder Anand, a computer science engineer, discovered her entrepreneurial inclination when she was working with a small B2B startup in 2015. Here she learnt much about managing a startup, including setting up a team, finding product-market fit and acquiring first clients.
In contrast, her husband and Traya’s second cofounder, Saiyed, was trying to keep a sinking food startup afloat at the cost of his deteriorating health. Much to his chagrin, not only had he gained a lot of weight, but his out of control thyroid levels were also causing him to lose hair.
The husband-wife duo knew it was time to seek help. “We realised that allopathic medicine offered limited solutions, which prompted us to embark on a quest for alternative treatments for his elevating health problems,” Anand said.
Initially focussed on addressing his thyroid issues rather than his hair loss, the cofounders consulted over 12 Ayurvedic doctors in India.
“Eventually, we found Dr Shailendra Chaubey, an Ayurvedic practitioner, who helped Saiyed heal through dietary interventions,” said Anand. Chaubey currently is the head of the Ayurveda division at Traya.
After following a specific diet and taking medicines for three months, Saiyed saw improvements in his health and experienced hair regrowth.
This episode led them to the realisation about the fragmented nature of the chronic health space in the country.
“We noticed that clinics were not integrating multiple sciences to address health issues, which made us question why patients had to choose between Ayurveda and allopathy instead of benefiting from a combination of both,” Anand said.
Driven by this realisation, they immersed themselves in extensive research across various fields, with hair loss emerging as a particularly compelling area of study for the cofounders.
In 2019, the cofounders assembled a team of seven doctors, including Chaubey. They proceeded with a trial involving 55 individuals, comprising both men and women of different ages and suffering from various types of hair loss. Over the course of five months, the trial yielded remarkable results — 35 participants experienced significant hair regrowth.
This success spurred the duo to officially establish Traya in December 2019 and launch the website a year later in November 2020.
Traya’s Evolution Theory
One thing the cofounders were very sure of when launching the startup was their vision, which was to enter the market only if their formulation could grow hair better than other brands in the market.
Traya started with a simple business model featuring a landing page where people suffering from hair loss could share their details. The cofounders would then call them to understand their health condition before providing them a solution certified by their team of doctors.
For most of 2019 and 2020, the founders sourced allopathic products directly from dermatologists and focussed on manufacturing proprietary Ayurvedic formulations. This is when the cofounders realised that their success lay not in their formulae but in streamlining the process of customising and delivering everything in a box to the consumer’s doorstep.
The Traya founders got a shot in the arm during the peak pandemic period when people, confined inside their homes, actively embraced telemedicine.
Despite this, the period proved to be challenging, as selling comprehensive hair treatment kits rather than single products on its platform required significant efforts to convince customers.
“The first year and a half was challenging because although we knew the merits of our products, educating our customers was difficult. As a D2C startup claiming to regrow hair, we faced scepticism,” Anand said.
During this time, the founders focussed on building tech, advanced diagnostic tools and predictive models through close collaboration with medical experts. By early 2022, Traya transitioned to a fully digital revenue model, completely eliminating the need for phone calls.
Currently, its business model involves visiting the Traya website and completing a comprehensive online form. This test covers health history and other relevant details. Subsequently, customers receive a month-long kit that includes a hair transformation kit, a customised treatment plan from doctors, an Ayurvedic diet plan, and access to a personal hair coach. The entire process requires a minimum of five months.
Started with 8 SKUs, Traya currently offers 30 SKUs, including solutions like Hair Vitamin, Hair Ras, Digest Boost, Iron Santulan, PCOS Santulan, Nourish Hair Oil, and Recap Serum, among others.
Traya’s Future Roadmap
Currently, Traya distinguishes itself by offering personalised treatments that prioritise efficacy over merely selling products. According to Anand, while competitors may customise products based on superficial preferences such as shampoo essence or personalised labelling, Traya provides each customer with tailored prescriptions and treatments specifically designed to address their individual hair health needs.
As part of its brand-building plan, it aims to maintain efficacy and innovation, all while getting the first-mover advantage in everything it plans to offer.
Going forward, the cofounders aim to expand internationally. This year, they plan to set foot into Bengal and South India. Additionally, they aim to expand their women’s segment, which currently comprises healthcare solutions for PCOS, postpartum, and menopause.
Vital to note that Traya operates in a highly competitive market, alongside brands that have similar offerings. At a time when there is a growing acceptance of diverse hair care regimes, many more players have stepped forth to claim a stake in this growing market with their organic shampoos, anti-greying hair serums, hair masks, suppliments and what not.
Amid the unabated influx of new brands, Traya will have to keep striving to stay ahead of the competition curve if it plans to sustain in this cut-throat market for long. For this, the Traya founders will need to up the ante from just providing customised hair treatments to users, who may jump ships in the absence of quick and concrete results.
[Edited by Shishir Parasher]
