1.

Introduction

a. Key problems and issues in the Case Study

i. Instant beauty is the need of the hour. Today, women are very busy and are not able to
dedicate a lot of time to beauty parlors and other time consuming beautifying
processes. But the beauty expectations/results needed are higher than ever.
ii. A sheet mask gives them an on the go beautification opportunity and provides great
results. It's like a cheat for regular beauty parlor visits and also avoiding the tedious face
pack process. But its awareness among the Indian women needs to be analyzed. Also,
the willingness of Indian women to accept a new product needs to be accessed.
iii. To find out the association that Indian women place to origin country while considering
a product. Also, which are those products they consider for usage, and check their
interest in Korean beauty products specifically.
iv. To find out the best distribution and communication channel for the premium cosmetic
product
v. To find out Indian cosmetic regulations and comparing it with that of US and Europe.

b. Thesis statement
To understand the needs/expectations of Indian Women w.r.t. beauty products that they use
and check the acceptability of sheet masks. With our research, we want to help Han Nari in
developing a marketing strategy and identify the channels that will help to communicate and
deliver the value proposition in an effective manner.

2. Background

a. Cosmetic product industry in India

● According to the report by Assocham in 2016, size of India’s cosmetic market was
around USD 6.5 billion which is expected to reach around USD 20 billion in the year
2025. According to the report “India Cosmetic Market Overview(2016)” by Research
and Markets, India’s cosmetic market was growing with a CAGR of 17.06% since
2011. The main reason behind this increase is because of increasing awareness
about the beauty products and the desire to look good. Victory of Indians at the
beauty contests across the world has contributed to the popularity and sale of
cosmetic products in India. As highlighted by Assocham, ​68% of the Indians use
cosmetics to boost their confidence​.
● For better understanding the market, we conducted a primary research by asking
questions to women in the age group of 20 years to 35 years. ​62% of the women
were full time employed​, ​33% were student​ and remaining ​5% were part time
employees​. Sample size was around 30 and it spanned across the big cities in all the
regions of India.

● As per our research, around ​33% of the women availed parlor service at least once
in a month​ while rest of them could not use parlor services due to time constraint.
 Around ​33% of them applied facial products on their own​ and rest 3 ​ 3% avoided
doing anything.
● Indians are more inclined towards natural and organic products. According to
research by Euromonitor in 2016, words such as ​‘natural’, ‘organic’, ‘botanical’,
‘free from chemicals’ and even ‘religious compliance’​ are the major factors behind
the purchase of personal care products. As per the report, ​71% of the surveyed
Indians would purchase face cream or lotion if it claimed to be natural​.
● Out of our total audience, around ​33% of the audience was not aware about sheet
masks​. Only ​19% of the people used sheet mask​s. Around ​48% of the people found
sheet masks to be trendy product​. Following were the preference for the facial
products.

● Out of the total audience, only 1​0% of the people were aware about the Korean
facial products​ while around​ 57% of the people were open in trying the Korean
products​. According to the report “India Cosmetics Market Profile(2015)” by
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare- Govt of India, following is the Indian imports
statistics for cosmetic products

● Following are the distribution channel related to findings from our primary research.
 Here, Retails means both Online and Offline. Other resources refer to purchasing products
from some known person who acts as a small distributor and sells product to friends and
relatives or people residing nearby.
The Report by Assocham highlighted that ​62% of the people purchased product online​ and
45% of the people purchased at any retail store​.

b. Regulations study​:

Indian Cosmetic Industry Brief Regulations

There are a lot of differences in cosmetic regulations in India when compared to regulated market
like USA, EU for cosmetic products with respect to applicable acts, regulations, guidelines, and listed
ingredients, specification of heavy metals, mandatory labeling and notification procedures to
competent authority in specified time frame

Pre Screening Requirements required for a product imported in India

Name of the proposed product

● Name of the Cosmetic product, pack sizes, variants (if any) along with actual manufacturer of
the product to be registered.
● Name & full address of Authorized Agent/ importer in India.
● Name & full address of Manufacturer & its Factory Premises.
● Fees paid (250 USD equivalent Indian rupees for each Brand proposed viz. each category of
cosmetics).

Labels of proposed products:-

● Legible label of the products circulated in the country of origin.

● Legible Original label for proposed products along with their variants (if any) as per Drugs and
Cosmetics Rules, 1945 which includes following:-
▪ Name of Cosmetics:-
▪ Name of Manufacturer and Complete address of premises where the cosmetic is
manufactured.
▪ Use Before
▪ Direction for safe use/Caution
▪ Batch no
▪ Manufacturing License no.
▪ Registration Number and Importer name and address
 ● List of Ingredients with details of concentration of each ingredient used in the product
composition
Regulatory Certificates:-

● Authenticated copy of manufacturing licenses/registration/marketing authorization in respect of

applied products issued by regulatory Authority from country of origin
● Original Free Sale Certificate issued by National Regulatory Authority of Country of origin for the
applied products.
Chemical Information of cosmetics:-

● Test protocol for testing of cosmetics

● Test report including result of Pb, As, Hg and microbiological test. (Wherever applicable)
Regulatory Requirements required for a product in India
Shelf-life data: ​BIS says that, Manufacturer has to conduct suitable shelf life study as per protocols
which ensure product integrity throughout the intended shelf life period through appropriate data

Safety data: BIS says that, Proof of safety studies should be available with the Manufacturer/distributer
need to be produced, if required. Manufacturer/distribute shall suitably inform the consumer, if there
are any precautions to be taken while using the products, which are known to show safety concerns in
specific population on the labels of such products

Expiry Date: ​Should be indicated as “Use before date”

​Quality Labelling:​ Not required

Follows the INCI labelling followed globally.

3. Hypothesis
● Indian women are ready to spend more on organic/herbal based facial products
● The choice of cosmetic product is affected by the origin country it is linked to
● Online channel has a big impact in generating awareness about beauty products(sheet masks in
our study)
● Women are more willing to trust a products which is available for trial
● The behaviour of consumers is different to the same product based on where they are
introduced to it , i.e. , airport,mall vs. normal retail stores,drug stores

4. Approach

● Our approach includes a detailed study of consumer behavior. We plan to contact Indian
Women personally and study their makeup kits and find the cost of products in their kit.
Then we find the % of face related beauty products which are a part of it. This will help
us in understanding the importance/willingness to pay of different types of customers
for face based products and how Han Nari can be a part of it
 ● The awareness of sheet masks is limited so trials become a very important form of sales
strategy. Different channels like malls and airports need to be utilized and studied since
the average stay time at these places is on the higher side and people will be more
accepting of trying things when they have free time. Different stores like Shopper stop
and Lifestyle that provide trials for the cosmetic products available in their store need to
be approached
● It is evident from the secondary research that organic and herbal ingredients have a very
high influence on consumer buying behavior. Hence, Retail stores selling organic
products need to be approached for selling the Han Nari sheet masks
● Apart from that as mentioned above, since according to secondary research majority
women prefer shopping online, strategies related to digital marketing will to be
developed. Online blogs, videos will be useful in creating awareness. It is important to
use keywords like herbal, organic, natural etc for creating online content.We will
proceed and may modify our approach based on results obtained on further study
● The reach of youtube beauty bloggers is huge and collaborations with them will be very
useful since they have a lot of followers

5. Why our team is best suited?

The members are strategically chosen in the context that they are not only good team players but are
also capable individual performers. The fact that we all know each other well helps us collaborate and
accomplish tasks in a smooth manner. Let us discuss about our members and their contribution to this
project so far:

· ​Vaibhav Bhanushali ​was responsible for all our secondary research and analysis. He is very efficient
and analytical with his work.

· ​ Shivakant Shukla​ and​ Shreyash Mantri​ were responsible for all primary research initiatives where
being on the field is required. Both of them are efficient communicators and very approachable, making
the person in front feel comfortable to speak with them.

· ​Amey Patale​ has worked on the regulations and financials. He is good at ascertaining financial
details and analyzing them.

· ​ Nivedita​ is an efficient presenter and being someone who loves to use beauty products,
understands the requirements of our target segment very well.

Our team consists of diverse people from Marketing, Finance and Operations domain which will help us
get an overall perspective to the problem. By working together, we will be able to come up with great
strategies and effective communication channels for the project.