From fascinating crafts, opulent creations, indigenous techniques of medicine to healing, skincare, and beauty products, India has been home to such naturally procured and existing materials for a long time. Yet, a proper engagement of these materials into a beneficial arrangement was not done by anyone for a very particular period in the history of Indian Beauty and Skincare field. Then came along ReverieBox by Revering Lifestyle LLP, which changed industry dynamics altogether.
ReverieBox is not just any sample box, but a healthy beauty discovery service domain. Its mission is to deliver beauty solutions that can be trusted while ensuring that only the brands that are completely cruelty-free, natural, GMO free, and eco friendly are promoted through its network. In the Interview below, the team of the company has shared some insights on how the start-up has evolved and iss changing lives of the people for the better. Let’s give it a read:
What is your vision behind your startup? Tell us how the idea came about.
As a young girl in the school I too chased beauty as it was commonly perceived, beginning with being fair and having flawless skin. Since I hailed from a middle class conservative family, it meant my refuge was more often than not the homegrown remedy. When I got a corporate job, I subscribed to a host of beauty products that existed in the market. Most of the products that I received were not useful for me, they were full of nasty chemicals like Sulphates and Parabens and hence I did not use them. These unwanted products were getting piled up in my dressing table.
Looking at that growing mountain of products, it was hard not to be struck by the cost of beauty that is borne both by us and by the environment. In our pursuit of the ideal, we tended to pursue anything and everything, impervious to the trail of waste we were leaving behind in our wake.
Luckily I met a friend, who wanted to start a startup and we got around discussing the idea of organic and cruelty free personalized beauty subscription entitled Reverie Box.
I dived headfirst into the project, feeling that I was doing something for every girl out there struggling with the ever changing notions and yardsticks of beauty. What I did not realize at the time was that my work was taking me closer to a larger problem, which also had to do with the waste we generated as part of our daily lives.
I am referring, of course, to plastic.
War against plastic today is as ubiquitous as plastic itself. We’ve never before had such widespread awareness on the subject, with organizations and governments around the world taking independent initiatives to reduce the circulation of single use plastics.
In my case, it started with my toothbrush. And after that, it was hard to overlook how plastic had hijacked our lives. How could I be about organic and cruelty free products and not do my own bit to reduce plastic usage? Thus began my experiments with marketing and selling a line of eco friendly sustainable products.
We started discovering eco-friendly sustainable products and identified artisans and manufacturers in India. I found a few artisans and manufacturers of these products in different parts of India. Lacking the necessary skills and know-how to market their products to a larger audience, their small business was localised to their respective regions only. Together with these artisans, today we are supplying these products to 10+ countries, creating a global supply chain.
What services/products/solutions do you offer?
We offer a range of organic and plastic free products ranging from Personal care to home and Dental hygiene products made out of Bamboo, Coconut Shell and Sustainable Natural Fibres.
– Seed paper products like pen and pencil
– Recycled paper craft items
What were the challenges you came across during the inception of your startup?
Investment Prospects, when caliber venture capitalists are investing more on Healthtech, Agritech, AI and Machine Learning and you have to realize how weak the venture system is in Goods and Retail Industry.
Is your company bootstrapped or have you received funding or do you plan on approaching investors?
Our company was bootstrapped with 3 Million Indian Rupees in tranches and we did breakeven in first two years and re-invested the money into the company for more assortments of products.
As the founder/CEO, what is your opinion on the current landscape of startup culture in India?
India lacks a clear long-term start-up roadmap, as economic liberalization is quite new to India. Given the size of the nation and the priorities, the government seems to keep the road-map behind compared to other industries.
According to you, how important is it to be updated with technology as per your industry sector?
Follow and promote the latest trends and look at your yearly requirements in advance. Try to learn from experts and pass the knowledge to upskill your staff and try to achieve the results rather than worry about the future unknown that might or might not happen.
How do you strategize on scaling your company in the future?
Creating a customer centered marketing strategies, methods, and systems in place. We shall also develop the content our customers want by building trust to gain market share and it can quickly be achieved with a well-implemented and managed staff.
