The Estée Lauder Companies has signed an agreement to acquire the stake it doesn’t already own in Indian luxury beauty company Forest Essentials, with the transaction expected to close in the second half of 2026, said Stéphane de La Faverie, president and chief executive officer of The Estée Lauder Companies.
The deal completes an 18-year partnership with the luxury Ayurveda brand, which was founded by Mira Kulkarni.
Forest Essentials sells Ayurvedic skincare and haircare products and competes with premium labels such as Kama Ayurveda. Estée Lauder had a 49% stake in the company in 2013, which it increased from a 20% stake it took in 2008.
Speaking to Mint, La Faverie, said, “Today, this brand is the leader in prestige skincare in India, which is still a very small segment of the larger beauty business in India. It has about 200 freestanding stores and has been able to grow net sales in low double digits. We expect to continue to do that and India is becoming an increasingly bigger contributor to the growth algorithm and we are going to accelerate growth here, and help shape the future of prestige beauty here,” de La Faverie said.
Estée Lauder manufactures, sells and distributes brands such as M·A·C, Bobbi Brown, Too Faced and Clinique. The acquisition is part of Estée Lauder’s broader push in emerging markets. It expects India to be one of its largest emerging markets and is a "priority" market, including Brazil, Mexico, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Middle East, the Philippines, South Africa, Thailand and Turkey.
“Emerging markets are very important for us as a whole, and within emerging markets, India is among our largest,” de La Faverie said.
India’s premium beauty market remains small relative to developed markets, accounting for roughly 10% of total beauty spend, he said. But growth is rapid. According to Kearney, the country became a billion-dollar luxury beauty market in 2024. This is expected to reach $1.6 billion by 2028 and $4 billion by 2035, growing at an expected CAGR of 14%, making it one of the fastest-growing markets in Asia and the rest of the world.
Small packs, wider reach
De La Faverie said a combination of rising incomes, urbanization and digital adoption is driving demand for beauty products in the country.
“The digitalization of the country has allowed us to go very deep in six, seven hundred cities,” he said, highlighting the company’s online reach across most pin codes.
To expand access beyond affluent consumers, Estée Lauder has been pushing smaller product packs in its other brands here.
“One thing we are doing meaningfully is the mini strategies. Smaller sizes allow us to touch more consumers. With some of our brands, we touch 19,000 pin codes in India,” de La Faverie said.
This approach targets India’s growing middle class, projected to contribute a significant share of new global consumers entering the middle-income segment by 2030.
“Middle class is lower-middle and higher-middle class, which are really the consumers that prestige beauty goes after,” he added.
India for the world
Forest Essentials’ headquarters and operations will remain in New Delhi, led by Kulkarni and her son Samrath Bedi. De La Faverie said the acquisition allows Estée Lauder to “protect the cultural heritage of the brand and support the current team in accelerating the brand in India and also the rest of the world. He said global potential in Ayurveda-based wellness products is also a big opportunity.
“Outside of India, the brand is at a very early stage in the Middle East and the UK. But the concept of Ayurveda with high performance resonates beyond the Indian diaspora as many people started to focus on their wellness post the Covid-19 pandemic,” he said.
“Estée Lauder brings exceptional expertise in prestige beauty, but they also respect the integrity of what we have built in India,” Kulkarni said. “They understand that our cultural roots and Indian-based operations are central to our success. We feel confident that we are working with a partner who sees our Indian identity not as a limitation, but as our greatest strength.”
India is central to Estée Lauder’s global emerging market strategy.
“The sum of the emerging markets will have a material contribution to the future growth algorithm of the company. India is absolutely central to our strategic acceleration for the world,” de La Faverie said.
Prestige beauty penetration in India remains low, around 10% of total beauty, leaving room for growth.
“With the emergence of the middle class, digitalization, and a strong local presence for more than 20 years, now this partnership really allows us to accelerate our position,” he said.
Globally, Estée Lauder continues to balance growth across markets. China and the US remain large contributors, but emerging markets are increasingly important.
“Part of the strategy is to rebalance growth globally and to be much more balanced. Clearly defining four verticals, Americas, China, APAC and travel retail, Europe/UK and emerging markets, allows us to capture growth around the world,” de La Faverie said.
The company’s net sales fell to $14,326 million in the year ended June 30, 2025, from $15,608 million a year earlier. It made a loss of $1.13 billion compared with a profit of $409 million a year earlier.