Nari’yal Cosmetics co-founders Bhumesh and Rahul are building a direct-to-consumer (D2C) beauty brand around coconut-inspired products, a focused digital strategy, and an emphasis on understanding consumer behaviour. Founded in September 2022, the brand emerged from an idea inspired by coconut farming in Thailand and the cultural significance of coconut in India.
The founders identified an opportunity to position coconut beyond its traditional association with hair oil and build a beauty brand that combines familiarity, affordability, and contemporary product positioning.
From ₹10 Lakh to a Growing Customer Base
Nari’yal Cosmetics began with an initial investment of approximately ₹10 lakh, which the founders used to support research, product sampling, company formation, and early digital marketing activities.
According to the founders, the brand has since built a customer base of more than 4.5 lakh. They consider this customer trust, alongside establishing a viable price point and a foundation for sustainable unit economics, among their key achievements.
Bhumesh oversees marketing, content, and brand-building activities, while Rahul focuses on technology and performance marketing. Their complementary experience in sales and marketing has shaped the company’s approach to developing its D2C business.
Research Before Product Launch
The founders emphasise that market research should precede product development and marketing investments. They recommend that aspiring entrepreneurs validate their ideas through an adequate sample size, independent consumer feedback, and, where necessary, specialised research agencies.
Drawing from their own experience, they estimate that an early-stage founder could allocate approximately ₹1 lakh to ₹1.5 lakh for research, depending on the scope and category.
They also advise entrepreneurs to test product samples with people outside their immediate circles to obtain more objective feedback before finalising formulations, packaging, and brand positioning.
A Data-First Approach to D2C Growth
For Bhumesh and Rahul, scaling a D2C business requires more than generating orders through paid advertising. They advocate building a secure online store, collecting customer data responsibly, and analysing consumer behaviour from the earliest stages.
Their recommended approach includes tracking website traffic, geographical patterns, customer cohorts, product-page engagement, and cart additions. These insights can help founders understand their audience and refine their marketing strategy over time.
The founders also shared an example involving a jewellery brand they advised. Instead of immediately prioritising purchases, they initially focused on add-to-cart and checkout-initiation campaigns to understand customer intent and help advertising algorithms identify relevant audiences. They subsequently shifted campaigns towards purchases.
Bhumesh and Rahul say this approach illustrates why early-stage brands should focus on building the top of the marketing funnel before expecting consistent sales.
Influencer Marketing: Visibility Over Immediate Sales
The Nari’yal Cosmetics founders believe influencer marketing can contribute to brand visibility, particularly for businesses that are still establishing recognition. However, they caution against relying exclusively on influencers to generate sales.
During the brand’s first six months, the team relied on in-house content rather than influencer collaborations. Later, the company experimented with large-scale creator campaigns, including a campaign involving 1,000 influencers and a separate initiative that published 150 content assets in a single day on Instagram.
According to the founders, the campaign generated collective traction of approximately one million. They also highlighted the potential of smaller content creators, arguing that audience engagement and community trust can be more meaningful than follower counts alone.
Their recommendation is to balance creator collaborations with original content, paid advertising, and long-term brand-building initiatives.
Building Operations on a Lean Budget
Beyond marketing, the founders stress the importance of inventory planning, manufacturing partnerships, and operational discipline. They recall starting with three stock-keeping units (SKUs), with an initial production quantity of around 3,000 units per SKU.
For early-stage entrepreneurs, they suggest exploring smaller manufacturers and third-party production partners instead of assuming that only large manufacturers can deliver quality products. Industry exhibitions can also help founders identify suppliers willing to work with lower minimum order quantities (MOQs).
The founders further recommend maintaining a practical workspace that accommodates essential functions such as administration, technology, packaging, and dispatch, rather than spending excessively on office infrastructure.
Their Advice for Aspiring Founders
Bhumesh and Rahul encourage entrepreneurs to build a strong foundation before attempting to scale. Their priorities include validating demand, establishing the right business structure, securing the online store, understanding customer behaviour, and developing a balanced marketing strategy.
They also underline the importance of founders staying involved in day-to-day operations, including reviewing packaging, dispatch processes, and returns to identify areas for improvement.
As India’s D2C beauty market continues to evolve, Nari’yal Cosmetics offers a perspective on building a consumer brand through research, digital capabilities, operational discipline, and a clear understanding of its audience.
For the founders, sustainable growth is not simply about chasing orders from day one. It is about building the systems, customer relationships, and brand visibility that can support long-term expansion.