Caring For Curly Hair Is Tough, But This Startup Promises To Fix Bad Hair Days

Anshita Mehrotra left journalism and started Fix My Curls to cater to the curly-hair community that struggles to find good hair care products in India

When Anshita Mehrotra came home to India during the 2019 winter break at British Columbia University, she could not find homegrown brands that would match the quality of global products to keep her curly hair healthy and manageable like she was used to in Canada. People born with naturally curly hair often spend a small fortune on such hair care products, but there has always been a pronounced demand-supply gap in the Indian market. Mehrotra, too, suffered from this gap, but this time, she quit her journalism course in the US and set up Fix My Curls, a hair care brand exclusively catering to people with curly hair.

Mehrotra is no stranger to the beauty business, as her family runs the skincare brand Fixderma. Initially, she started making small batches of products after some rigorous R&D, followed by clinical testing and finalising the formulations. Based on user feedback, these were further refined and finally launched in the market. Instead of approaching other contract manufacturers, Mehrotra gave the contract to Fixderma due to its industry expertise but continues to run her company as an independent entity. The hair care brand sells its products across 13 marketplaces like Nykaa and Amazon, besides its own website. It has sold a total of 4.35 Lakh products worth INR 15 Cr and served 120K users. It clocked a gross revenue of INR 7.2 Cr in FY22 and entered the global arena, starting with Nepal and Malaysia. It is now shipping to 11 countries in total, including Germany, Romania and Saudi Arabia, among others

Fix My Curls procures its ingredients from France and Germany. Its flagship products such as curl-quenching hair butter and hair gelly (made from flaxseeds and used for hair repair, hydration and styling) are paraben- and silicone-free. Better still, all its products are vegan and cruelty-free (PETA-certified).

In 2023, it plans to expand its retail presence through pop-up stores and participating in fairs held at educational institutions to gain wider traction. In the long term, Mehrotra plans to expand to 40 countries, set up a robust pan-India distribution chain with a 24-hour delivery service and open offices in every state.