Every once in a while, there comes a homegrown gem that causes quite a stir. Say hello to d’you, the brainchild of Shamika Haldipurkar, that has been making waves for all right reasons. From its aesthetic brand language to its science-backed formulations, the brand has managed to gain cult status in a very short period.
d’you’ In My Defence Barrier-Building Moisturiser is my personal favourite for it has 20 times higher ceramide content than the industry norm and a game-changer for barrier repair. Alongside this, its Hustle Face Serum and Good Grease are also widely loved. But it’s not just about efficacy here, d’you brings a whole vibe to the skincare scene–fun, youthful, and addictive. Even Alia Bhatt is an IMD fan. So, needless to say, the brand is checking all the right boxes.
Curious about the magic behind d’you? We caught up with Shamika Haldipurkar who let us in on d’you’s journey, her favourite product from the brand and left us guessing what’s cooking for their next big launch.
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Previously a practising Attorney in the dispute resolution legal sector, Shamika transitioned to being an entrepreneur to start a beauty brand with a desire to bring to India global quality high-performing products that have innovative formulas. “I was tired of seeing the same type of copy-paste skincare products in India, and I felt like the consumers needed an elevated experience from a homegrown brand so they could stop looking at the West and East to buy skincare products,” she says.
Shamika started working on the brand four years ago when she booked a one-way ticket to Korea and went to the land of cosmetic science. While she had no idea about how to start a beauty brand or any contacts in the industry in India or Korea, she went about cold calling different labs and convincing them to give her a meeting.
“One thing led to another, and some labs saw potential in our brand and decided to work with us. We spent over 16 months in R&D formulating our first product Hustle, and with just this one product we launched in the Indian market,” Shamika reminisces. When asked about who her muse was while creating this product, she says, “I would say me, every other busy and lazy girl out there and the plethora of consumers who were getting overwhelmed with skincare, wanting an efficacious one-bottle solution without having to play chemist at home were all my muse for Hustle.”
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The muse behind d’you is actually who the brand wants to cater to–smart, independent, intelligent and aware consumers of today. “It’s men and women like you and me that consume intelligent content, ask questions, challenge norms work hard with passion and take joy in living a good life,” says Shamika.
While d’you is known to be a brand with innovative and high-performing formulations, credible marketing and an elevated brand experience, its USP lies in the fact that every product the brand launches has a huge WHY behind that product’s birth. Explaining this, Shamika says, “Every product has a unique story angle and solves a different pain point. So in a way, every product is a hero product for us and it’s hard to pick favourites. But maybe I’m most proud of Hustle, as that was the toughest formula to get right.”
I, for one, can confidently say that everyone around me who has used the d’you Hustle Face Serum has not one bad thing to say about it!
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However successful the brand is, there is always a long journey filled with struggles that are often overlooked. Talking about the challenges she faced with d’you, Shamika says, “There is no tried and tested blueprint for scaling a homegrown digital-first beauty brand in the Indian premium segment. So every day is a new day, a new challenge and by solving it one by one we’ve reached so far. But the challenges are what makes this journey so interesting, so no complaints here!”
In a previous interview with ELLE, Shamika also spoke about her journey through the pandemic and said, “Having launched in the middle of a pandemic, working through various challenges and with limited resources is in the DNA of the brand. We launched the brand with bare minimal resources and I was doing the job of probably 10 different people.”
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What’s Next For d’you?
While signing off, Shamika built up the suspense by saying, “A couple of very interesting launches coming up this year so keep your eyes peeled on our Instagram for updates.” But because she also said sunscreen and lip balm are two products she always carries around with her, we can’t help but wonder if those are the next big launches for d’you!
