Dutch haircare brand Keune, which re-entered the professional salon segment in India a year ago, sees much room for expansion this year.
Speaking to Business Line , Mr George M. Keune, CEO/Export Manager, said the brand, which came to India in 2001, suffered from the lack of a good distributor in the country, resulting in the India business going “belly up” in 2010. However, there is a ready market in salons which have earlier used Keune products, he said.
In the Rs 150 crore salon haircare market in India, and abroad, Keune competes mainly with L'Oreal and Schwarzkopf. It is among the top 10 salon haircare brands in the US, Australia and the Netherlands, and the top brand in countries such as Pakistan, North Africa, Croatia, Slovenia, Russia, Sweden, Argentina and Brazil, Mr Keune claimed.
Saying that they do big business in countries much smaller than India - in Pakistan, for instance, the brand does nearly €1 million worth of business every month - the prospects for India appear bright, he added. Keune is present in 60 countries and does business worth €300 million (ex-manufacturing value), he said.
According to Mr Sanjeev Korada, Founder, Glosel, the Singapore-based distributor of Keune in India, the brand now has 3 per cent market share in India. It is present in 1,200 salons but hopes to add at least 800 this year.
Glosel is also bringing French salon skincare brand Matis to India shortly. Ms Danielle Rouault, International Business Developer, Matis, said the largely export-oriented brand was No 3 in France and had salon billings of €70-90 million.