Growth Of Ayurveda And How COVID Has Impacted It!

Global Ayurveda market was valued at $ 4.5 billion dollars in 2017 and is expected to reach $14.6 billion dollars by 2026, growing at the rate of 16.14 CAGR.

Ayurveda is the oldest and time tested healthcare system of the world. Increased faith, trust and demand in Ayurvedic foods, supplements and natural beauty products has opened doors for innovative ideas and given fuel to entrepreneurship and business opportunities over the years.

The belief in Ayurveda has risen even more during the coronavirus pandemic and has taught our generations the importance of Immunity in our lives and to keep our body’s defence mechanism resilient and strong at all times.

COVID-19 impact has led to a huge shift in perception of individuals towards pursuit of health, wellness and strong immunity. It has influenced a dramatic shift of importance towards preventive care, wellness and immunity focused health supplements, nutrition foods and drinks.

Indian Ayurveda Market

Demand for Ayurvedic food supplements and immunity boosters with all natural ingredients is gaining traction across the world. Global Ayurveda market was valued at $ 4.5 billion dollars in 2017 and is expected to reach $14.6 billion dollars by 2026, growing at the rate of 16.14 CAGR. Indian Ayurveda market in 2020 is estimated around INR 30,000 crores but high majority of the market share is taken by top few leading Ayurveda companies in the country.

In 2015, Kesh King, an Ayurvedic Hair care oil brand was acquired by Emami for Rs. 1,651 crores. This was soon followed by another wave of Ayurveda awareness with aggressive marketing and growth of Patanjali. These events inspired us and reassured our faith in the potential of growth in Ayurveda segment.

Factors contributing to the growth of Ayurveda market in India

1. Increased disposable income and spending habits by health conscious individuals.

2. Increased penetration & distribution network to Tier 2, 3 & 4 towns due to digitalisation and direct to consumer reach through online operations.

3. Many brands are experimenting with modern packaging which are appealing to new customers either with design or convenience to use the product especially with ready to drink or eat products.

4. Increased social media awareness & reach where consumers are able to connect and relate with brand’s messaging, a celebrity or influencer endorsement whom fans admire.

5. Many of the leading companies in India launched additional Ayurvedic products portfolios to their existing product portfolios because of the surge in demand and consumer preferences.

Birth of Ayurveda Start-ups

Many start up investments have been made in the last few years in domestic Ayurveda and wellness space but only few of them have scaled exponentially after pivoting rationally. There are few noticeable demand trends observed by digital B2C start-ups in product categories like weight loss, weight gain, Men’s sexual wellness, Men’s grooming, Hair care and Ayurvedic skin care. There’s also an increased acceptance and demand for natural ingredients based products made with Turmeric/Curcumin, Apple cider vinegar, onion seeds, coffee based skin care products etc.

In our experience, increased digitalisation has given confidence to many new entrepreneurs to launch start-ups in the Ayurveda space. Young entrepreneurs are disguised to believe into easy launch and start of their business through social media. While Facebook & Instagram and other channels are good to reach a wide audience but they are not sufficient to run a profitable business. Majority of the brands struggle to break even because of high social media ad spends, acquisition costs and subsequent delivery issues, returns and operational costs etc. As per my experience, one needs to raise enough capital to successfully scale up the business online. Also, a proper understanding of the market, scalability, operations of the business and good service is the crux of every business. Ayurveda market is one which needs an additional element – delivering a well-researched formulated product.

Ayurveda is definitely going to be a humongous and highly coveted market in the coming years as people are understanding and experiencing the benefits of it.