Kishore Biyani, the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Future Group is eyeing to acquire the Gujarat-based Ayurveda company Iraya from Athena Life Sciences. Iraya is an ethical cosmetic brand which deals in herbal beauty and personal care products. This sector has lately seen a great success and Biyani is all set to enter it.
With this acquisition, Baba Ramdev’s ayurvedic brand Patanjali should gear up to face a tough competition in the market. Similar to Patanjali, Iraya sells ayurvedic products such as ayurvedic oil, facial massage cream, neem and basil soap, hair gel, nutrifying skin food and face wash, among others. It also deals in herbal products for anti-dandruff and hair re-growth treatment.
“We are in talks for acquisitions in the ayurvedic beauty space. Valuations might be a little high now, but we are exploring opportunities,” said Biyani.
If the acquisition procedure of Iraya succeeds, Biyani would join the race of the top FMCG companies such as Dabur, Colgate Palmolive, Hindustan Unilever to challenge the supremacy of Patanjali in ayurvedic products. In last few years, Baba Ramdev’s owned Patanjali’s growth was phenomenal which made it the biggest disruptor in the Indian FMCG industry. Patanjali became the second largest FMCG group with a turnover of over Rs 10,500 crore last year. It has been reported that the Future Group founder has taken inspiration from Patanjali’s expeditious expansion and has aspiring plans for his ayurvedic brand.
Kishore Biyani-led Future Group deals in modern retail sector with 1,700 outlets nationwide across formats ranging from grocery, department chains, hypermarkets to mall, and now he is ready to deal in Ayurveda Space too. These days, most of the FMCG giants are indulging in the production of ayurvedic products which is increasing the number of global and local rivals in the market. Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali may soon have to face a new challenger who is all pumped up to enter the race.