Naturals salon chain to head into West Asia, US

Groom India Salon & Spa Pvt Ltd, which owns the salon chain Naturals, has signed master franchisee agreements to expand into West Asian countries and the US, making it a multinational brand.

“We have signed a pact with UAE-based SBA Corp to take Naturals to all GCC countries. To start with, we will open 15 salons in Dubai in October in one go, and are planning a big-bang launch at a gala event there with our brand ambassador Kareena Kapoor,” said CK Kumaravelu, Co-founder and CEO of Groom India Salon.

It has also signed a pact with a group of NRIs in the US to set up a chain of 10 salons in San Francisco by December this year.

According to him, besides catering to a huge Indian diaspora there, Naturals will also attract locals with its Ayurveda-based therapies and Indian hairdos.

The ₹270-crore company has roped in Bollywood diva Kareena Kapoor a few months ago to endorse Naturals, which was earlier endorsed by actor Genelia D’Souza.

“Following this, we gained a great amount of traction in the market. It generated a lot of enquiries from West Asia and the US,” he said. It also brought on board US-headquartered Fitch to design its outlets.

The company plans to expand its horizon in the domestic market by focusing more on small towns and cities.

“When we first opened our salon in Coimbatore, we thought the city would take one salon. But now we have 25, and are planning to add 10 more,” says Kumaravelu. Not just tier II cities, but our outlets in tier III and even smaller cities such as Theni, Cumbum (near Madurai), Udumalpet, Palani, Ariyalur and Nagapattinam are doing well. “The outlets in the rural market report an average monthly business of ₹6 lakh, with the Nagarcoil outlet posting the highest of ₹10 lakh a month, consistently.”

The chain currently has 390 outlets, of which only 10 are owned by the company while the rest are franchised. Last year, it tied up with Indian Overseas Bank to promote entrepreneurship among women.

The bank has come forward to fund up to ₹25 crore under the ‘Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises’ scheme to women franchisees identified by the company. As on date, says Kumaravelu, more than 85 per cent of our franchisee salons are owned and run by women entrepreneurs.