Marico to set up skincare clinics, spa saloons in Indian metros

Mohini Bhatnagar
22 November 2002

Mumbai: Marico Industries is planning to open a chain of skincare and spa saloons called Kaya Skin Clinic in the major metropolises of India.

These clinics will offer a wide range of effective skin treatment customised for Indian skin types in the ambience of a spa. The first Kaya Skin Clinic will open in Mumbai by the end of 2002.

Says Marico Industries chairman and managing director Harsh Mariwala: “The new venture is an extension based on our strengths in the personal care business. Kaya is an attempt on the part of the company to fill the existing gap in the beauty services business in India.“

Every Kaya Skin clinic will offer scientific US Food and Drug Administration-approved unisex dermatological procedures. The target audience for Kaya Skin Clinics would be men and women in the SEC A/B category. With this market segment in mind, Marico aims to exploit the potential of moving up the value chain in the personal care business.

The first Kaya skin clinic will open in Bandra, a posh suburb of Mumbai, and will next move to Delhi and to other parts of the country. Initially, Marico plans to take the ownership route and not the franchisee route for these clinics.

Company officials, while not revealing the amount of investment involved in the venture, say the company will evaluate and crystallise expansion plans based on the experience gathered through the first clinic.