Mirah Belle Naturals: Nurtured by Nature

Mirah Belle Naturals: Nurtured by Nature

Shivani Kapur, the lady boss breathing into miracles of nature within India's organic beauty space with her brand

Every successful entrepreneurial seed is sown somewhere.

There is no 'magic pill' that effortlessly launches one into the free world of entrepreneurship. For some, the pluck to be a disruptor grows for a long time, days, months, even years, before its final fruition.

Previously iced for a handful of legacy brands, the beauty industry is springing with newcomers. Estimated to touch the mark of Rs. 80,370 crores by 2017-2018 (According to a KPMG report), the industry is in the bosom of a new dawn, welcoming fresh brands fueled by success and making way for a new crop of organic beauty brands. Shivani Kapur, the founder behind organic beauty brand Mirah Belle Naturals, is holding her own-the indie brand, cooked in Shivani's Kitchen, is now an avowed brand sold at 15 E-Commerce leaders like Nykaa, Purplle, Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, Shopclues, Organicshop and in 6 geographies across the country.

Trends in the beauty industry are wavering and it seems like consumers worldwide are done with chemical-based beauty products. The change is good and consumers are experiencing it with the revolution of nature-based products. Everyone wants to be a slice of this natural journey but only a few are able to create milestones that are meant to stay. Shivani's entrepreneurial journey and Mirah Belle's inception ignited from a common platform. It all evoked with a keen desire to clean the blemishes left by chemical-based beauty brands with something kosher… something beneficial….truly exotic… yet affordable. Shivani aimed to infuse nature's miracle into nourishing handmade soaps, free from roundly available Syndets or Synthetic-based soaps. A 13-year old seasoned engineer by profession, Shivani's kitchen became her laboratory and nature's constituents like oils, kinds of butter, clays, caustic soda-her ingredients. With a couple of keen hands, she shaped her entrepreneurial vision into Mirah Belle Naturals in 2017.

Emerging as a beauty magnet

As long as someone keeps an open mind, the world becomes an oyster. This year-old beauty magnet today homes 37 varieties of Certified, Organic-Handmade Face & Body Soaps in four different proportion across various price points(ranging from Rs.10 to Rs 236) with exotic ingredients like -Goat Milk, Coconut Milk, Activated Charcoal, Shea Butter, Calendula, Chamomile, Evening Primrose, Sandalwood to name a few and other nourished product lines. Mirah Belle Natural's bedrock has been anchored by a core belief that Organic, Safe & Beneficial Personal Care Products is not a luxury for the rich but a necessity for people at large. With a pure desire to educate people in line with the long-term health hazards associated with chemical-based products, Mirah Belle Naturals aims to bring into being Sulfate, Paraben, Formaldehyde, Silicone & Mineral Oil Free products at thrifty prices. The products have been certified as Organic, Natural and Sulfate & Paraben free by ITC Labs. The brand has also been accredited with ISO Certification. Mirah Belle's entire product range has been licensed under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act of the State Government.

Infusing the goodness of nature in its product line

Buttoning down the pain points of the human beauty obedient to Skin & Hair, the brand has planned a horizontal expansion in these ranges to heal:

• Skin – Pigmentation, Aging, Acne & Dry Skin
• Hair – Hair Fall, Dandruff, Dry & Frizzy Hair, Premature Greying

At the brand's manufacturing unit at Gurgaon, all the product formulations are made by blending exotic oils of the West with Ayurvedic Herbs of the East to offer benefits of both the worlds. The ingredients used here are rare & extremely potent which includes Argan, Jojoba, Evening Primrose, Sea Buckthorn, Patchouli, Borage, Cedarwood, Lavender, Rose, Sandalwood, Rosemary, Ginger, Curry Lead, Macadamia Nut, Hazelnut, Activated Charcoal, Dead Sea Salt, Beeswax, Shea Butter, Cocoa Butter, Mango Butter, Bentonite Clay, Calendula, Chamomile, Aloe Vera, Neem, Turmeric, Basil and innumerable other ingredients which are at the top of the line.  Apart from this, the firm also has complimentary products to complete the range – Mens Range, Baby Range, Healing Salves etc.

Customer satisfaction lies above all for Mirah Belle, that;s why the brand has tried to mark the products as affordable as possible by an endeavor to expand its Budget Range (Under Rs 100). Further, the brand also has a Medium Range (Rs 100 – Rs 500) and is planning ahead to launch a premium range (Rs 500 – Rs 1500).

Offerings

Bath and Body

• Handmade Soaps
• Sulphate Free Face Wash
• Sulphate Free Body Wash
• Sulphate Free Hand Wash
• Intimate Hygiene Wash

Skin Care

• Lip Balm
• Eye Cream
• Organic Salves & Balms
• Body Lotion
• Organic Body Butters
• Herbal Body Oils
• Hand Cream
• Foot Cream

Face Care

• Face & Body Spray
• Creams & Moisturisers
• Alcohol Free Toners
• Face Serum
• Face Oil

Ayurvedic Oil

• Essential Oils
• Carrier Oils
• Fragrance Oils

Hair Care

• Herbal Hair Sprays
• Sulphate Free Shampoo
• Hair Conditioner
• Herbal Hair Oils
• Hair Softening Serum

Collection

• Men's Range
• Mother & Child
• Pet Range
• Bug Repellent Range

Mirah Belle's Valuation

Mirah Belle is a bootstrapped startup whose tip to toe investment is taken care by the Founder-Ms. Shivani Kapur. The investment till now has been around Rs 3.5 Cr. She also belongs to the Promoter Family of Rico Auto Industries – one of the leading players in the auto-ancillary segment in India. Apart from thinking & breathing Mirah Belle, Shivani also has an active interest in Sports.

Road Ahead

Fortune is smiling widely on Mirah Belle Naturals. Already enjoying its presence over 15 e-Commerce websites, the brand is planning ahead to open dialogue with a few International E-Commerce websites to initiate the Global front. Mirah Belle is actively looking at aggressively expanding its Offline Distribution Channel across the country after successfully marking its presence across Punjab, Delhi, Gujrat, Jammu, West Bengal & Maharashtra. For the rest of the financial year, the brand is looking at covering 15 major states in India.

Founder's Periscope

"What meets the eye… is an iota of what exists"

Shivani Kapur

Edited Excerpts of the interview

What is the hardest thing about being an entrepreneur?

• People Management – One has to have the ability to pick good people, get them to believe in your product, train them to deliver the best quality product, make them feel a part of the whole system and then eventually delegate responsibility to those people so that you can channelize your energy elsewhere.
• Problem Solver – You need to be a constant problem solver for different departments. Whether it may be production, design, accounts, packaging, sales or even customer service – each is going to have a problem on board to be solved daily. Hence, you need to be on top of your game at all times.
• Good Shock Absorber – There will be downsides or hurdles which seem as if they are the end of the world. You need to maintain your composure when these shocks hit you & not get bogged down or disheartened. You need to believe that you are doing something good and if the problems don't come your way then they will go someone else's way… which might be a good thing after all.

What is the best thing about being an entrepreneur?

The gratification of creating something new, of solving a problem & ultimately benefitting people at large is something that makes me sleep well.

What piece of advice would you give to youth in the business environment?

Always try to do something you have always wanted to do but ensure that you have enough experience or resources to back you up. Leaving something half way or failing at it due to lack of resources can be extremely disheartening.

It's good to take a plunge but the timing needs to be perfect!