The Indian haircare market is projected to grow from INR320bn (US$4.3bn) in 2020 to INR494.3bn (US$5.9bn) by 2025 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.1% over the 5-year period, says GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s report, ‘India Haircare – Market Assessment and Forecasts to 2025’ reveals that the Indian haircare market growth is majorly driven by the styling agents category, which is forecast to register the fastest value CAGR of 12.2% during 2020–2025. The category is followed by salon hair care, which is projected to record a CAGR of 11.2% during the same period.

Savitha Kruttiventi, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData, says: “Derived mainly from Ayurveda, the holistic approach of linking health with beauty resonates well with Indian consumers, who are now opting for products containing natural ingredients. This has encouraged the manufacturers in the haircare market to widen their product portfolios to accommodate natural ingredient-based products, which can range from brands using one or few ingredients to focus on an entire natural/organic product line. For instance, a new hair conditioner in Himalayan Rose variant was launched recently under Wow Skin Science brand that is said to be enriched with 92.2% naturally derived ingredients.”

‘Convenience stores’ was the leading distribution channel in the Indian haircare market in 2020, followed by department stores and hypermarkets & supermarkets.

The volume share of India at a global level is expected to grow from 13.6% in 2020 to 17.7% by 2025. Similarly, the country’s share at the regional level is expected to increase from 35.5% in 2020 to 44.5% by 2025.

​Marico Ltd., Unilever, and L’Oréal S.A., Inc were the top three companies in the Indian haircare market by value in 2020, while Parachute and Sunsilk were the leading brands in the market.

Ms Kruttiventi concludes: “Indian consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about how environmental friendly and ethical their favorite beauty and grooming brands are. Furthermore, growing consumer awareness of the negative ecological impact of greenhouse gas emissions is driving interest in ‘green’ personal care products. As a result, manufacturers are focusing on lowering their carbon emissions, both through changing their production processes and using ingredients which have no or little impact on the environment.”