French beauty giant, L'Oreal, is in advanced talks to acquire a majority stake in Indian direct-to-consumer (D2D) personal care startup, Innovist, which owns popular brands like Bare Anatomy, Chemist at Play, Sunscoop, and Vinci Botanicals.
If the deal goes through, Innovist would be valued at anywhere between $350 million and $450 million, roughly ₹3,240 crore to ₹4,170 crore, making it one of the largest buyouts in India's consumer startup space in recent years, according to a Moneycontrol report. In terms of size, it would also surpass HUL's acquisition of skincare brand Minimalist for around ₹3,000 crore last year.
The deal is planned to happen in phases. In the first leg, L'Oreal would pick up a controlling stake in Innovist, with a gradual roadmap to eventually own 100% of the company over the following years, the report added.
2 March 2026
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The exact size of the stake to be sold in the first round, however, it is unclear who would sell it. The report also noted that the terms have not been finalised and could change. If talks progress at the current pace, the deal is expected to be sealed by April-end.
The move comes at a time when L'Oreal's top management has expressed dissatisfaction with the company's performance in India. During the fourth quarter earnings call this year, L'Oreal's Global CEO Nicolas Hieronimus said, "As far as India is concerned, when I say that, I'm not satisfied, we had high single-digit growth, we did not gain a lot of market share, if any."
The acquisition of Innovist appears to be part of a revised strategy by the France-headquartered company to grow its market share in India.
Currently, the founders of Innovist hold a combined 49.7% stake in the company. Its other shareholders include consumer-focused venture capital firm Sauce VC, Point72 Ventures, ICICI Ventures, and Patni Financial Advisors.
Notably, the development is part of a broader trend of global beauty majors making acquisitions in India's fast-growing personal care market. Earlier this month, US cosmetics giant Estée Lauder announced that it would acquire the remaining ownership stake in Forest Essentials, taking full control of the Indian luxury Ayurvedic beauty brand.
