Gone are the days when skincare for Indian men was an occasional ritual before a wedding or a special event, often relying on borrowed products from their partners. A significant transformation is underway in the grooming aisles, which are rapidly expanding beyond traditional soaps and shaving creams to include a full arsenal of cleansers, sunscreens, serums, and targeted treatments.
Investors Take Note as Market Matures Post-Pandemic
This fundamental shift in male grooming habits, which accelerated in the post-pandemic years, has captured the serious attention of investors and major Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies. The trend is being rapidly adopted through digital-first and direct-to-consumer channels.
Data from Tracxn reveals that men's skincare startups in India have raised $102.6 million since 2015. Notably, all of the top five funding rounds in this category occurred after 2020. Funding reached its peak in 2022 at $49.8 million, before experiencing a sharp slowdown to $4.1 million in 2024 and a mere $162,000 so far in 2025, mirroring a broader venture capital funding pullback.
Strategic Acquisitions Signal Market Confidence
Despite the recent funding cooldown, established players are betting big on the segment's long-term potential through strategic acquisitions. Earlier this month, Honasa Consumer, the parent company of Mamaearth, acquired the men's skincare brand Reginald Men for Rs 195 crore. The brand found its early footing by strategically focusing on sunscreen.
"In our initial testing, sunscreen clearly stood out," said founder Trisha Reddy Talasani. "We focused all our energy on that SKU and marketed it specifically to men, even though women can also use it." The brand successfully scaled by leveraging lower customer acquisition costs in tier II and III markets, using a mix of direct-to-consumer channels and online marketplaces, which now contribute equally to its sales.
In another major move, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) acquired Muuchstac for Rs 450 crore last month. This acquisition was less about traditional grooming and more about moving men up the value chain from basic soap to specialized facial cleansers. "It represented an upgrade from soap to face wash and added capabilities with a strong private label," explained GCPL Managing Director and CEO Sudhir Sitapati.
A New Focus on Efficacy Over Masculine Branding
Industry experts believe the men's skincare market in India is still in its early stages of segmentation and sophistication. "Men's grooming has been under-indexed in India for years," noted Angshuman Bhattacharya, Partner and National Leader for Consumer Products and Retail at EY. He points out that while many skincare benefits are universal, marketing has historically been women-centric, inadvertently excluding men.
"What's changing is a sharper focus on efficacy, chemistry, and education, not just masculine positioning," Bhattacharya added, highlighting the evolution in marketing narratives.
Quick Commerce Fuels Habit Formation
The convenience of quick commerce platforms is further cementing these new grooming routines. Swiggy Instamart has observed a remarkable surge in demand. A spokesperson revealed that over the last 12–24 months, the men's grooming category on Instamart has grown over 100% year-on-year, driven by the twin factors of convenience and the privacy of home delivery.
This data underscores a clear trend: skincare for men in India is transitioning from a niche, occasional concern to a mainstream, regular part of personal care, creating a dynamic and competitive new market segment for brands and investors alike.
