CHENNAI: Kavitha Sunderrajan, founder and director of Lindo Beauty Care, a personal care brand, strongly believes that wellness begins at home. It is perhaps this philosophy, among others, that pushed her to leave her 9-to-5 job in pursuit of starting an online business.
“While working night shifts in an IT firm, I became prone to getting black circles around my eyes. To help myself and my skin, I began researching home remedies, and so on. That marked the beginning of my journey into wellness and home-based beauty care,” she recalls.
From soaps, serums, scrubs to whatnots, Kavitha prepares products using freshly harvested ingredients from her backyard and ships them to homes across India. The first-generation entrepreneur chats about her journey, love for gardening and vision for the future. Excerpts follow.
Your self-care journey stemmed from personal needs and experiences. What did you have to learn the hard way?
Yes, there are several takeaways this journey has given me. But, what I learned during the formative years is what helped me a lot in gaining perspective. For instance, there was a period when I was suggested a skin-lightening cream by a friend. Though I saw visible results in a month, I was later made aware of the ingredients used to prepare the product. It had certain steroids to enable skin bleaching. On further research, I found how harmful they were to the skin and, in extreme cases, that they could also cause cancer. When I stopped using it, my almost blemish-free skin began having breakouts. This was one of several incidents that urged me to start researching simple skincare remedies that can be done at home. I used to prepare small quantities of a few products like face packs and also share them with friends. I received good feedback about the products and that’s how I decided to start a small-scale business, to spread the goodness of homemade organic products.
When you decided to give your passion a commercial spin, how did you prepare yourself for the transition?
When I started, I was only focusing on helping myself, my friends and family — for healthy skin, hair and body. But, when starting a business was on the cards, I decided to learn more about the nuances of crafting these products. I ensured that I attended at least seminars and one-day workshops and classes on organic beauty care product-making. It helped me a lot in understanding the properties of the raw ingredient and its effect on the skin. For instance, citrus fruit solutions are not advisable for people with dry skin. Such quick pointers helped me a lot in gaining an understanding of what was to be done. It was a path of trial and error. With the support of friends and family, I was able to craft a business model and it’s been a gratifying experience.
Where do you source your ingredients from and how do you ensure their authenticity?
I was, in that sense, lucky. In our ancestral house, our family has been nurturing a garden for decades now. From curry leaves, tomatoes, hibiscus, rose, henna, aloe vera, neem, peppermint to every ingredient we use in our products, they are all sourced from my garden. We use the produce from the garden to cook our meals too. So, there is no question of it being of low quality. I am part of a joint family, and we all care for the plants and products like they are our children.
Does your family help in furthering your business reach?
They are my backbone, to say the least. Be it packing, ideating a new product, suggesting changes or new ideas, they are always present to guide me. Everyone in my family is either in the IT sector or banking. I am a first-generation entrepreneur. So, everyone is as thrilled and excited about my venture as I am.
Did the lockdown affect your business in any way?
Interestingly, it was during the lockdown time when we had our highest business spike and reach. With people staying indoors without the option of going out, many turned the focus on self-care. So, small-scale, cloudbased businesses like ours, especially the ones that deal with wellness and care, received much traction.
Who is your target audience?
So far, based on the orders we’ve been receiving, teenagers, pregnant women, people above the age of 30 and parents looking for organic baby products have been our clientele. Those above 30 years purchase products with ingredients that have anti-ageing properties, new-mothers buy products to pamper and revitalise their mane and reduce stretch marks. Our baby care products are a huge hit too; they are custom- made to suit every individual’s need. Some babies might be allergic or have a reaction to certain powders and ingredients, so we were mindful of not pre-designing products for such sensitive requirements. We prepare everything from scratch, with love.
From preparing to packing the products, your day must be quite hectic. Where does your personal time fit in?
I have a very close-knit family and they are my priority. Whenever I get time between work, I ensure I spend time with them and indulge in fun activities. The time I spend with them helps me bounce back and do better at work. We also enjoy exploring restaurants that serve organic food. It is one of my dreams, to start a restaurant that serves traditional and organic food. Besides this, I enjoy gardening and I allocate some time of my day to feed the street dogs in our neighbourhood. It is the small things in life that keep me happy.
What is your vision for the brand?
The ultimate dream is to retain Lindo as the flagship brand and open a chain of salons under it. The salon-spa will not only offer wellness, skincare and relaxation services like massages, acne treatment and so on, but will also use Lindo’s organic products in its processes. The idea is to keep everything in-house, organic and sustainable. We are eco-conscious and will not encourage any beauty treatments that are harmful to the customer in any way. Also, there will be less to nil usage of machines. This is the vision and I hope it takes shape soon. For details, visit Instagram @lindo_beauty_care