Manetain, India’s leading brand in curly hair care and accessories, has received an investment of INR 75 Lakhs for a 10% equity from Aman Gupta, the founder of BOAT, on the second season of Shark Tank India.
Started in 2018 by Yuba and Hinshara, who met in a curly hair WhatsApp group, Manetain initially launched a range of hair accessories to establish a name in the curly hair community. Following this success, they expanded their offerings to include a hair care range consisting of two shampoos, a multi-purpose conditioner and India’s first co-wash. The brand now offers over 1,500 SKUs, with plans to expand the range further.
In conversation with us, Founders Hinshara Habeeb and Yuba Aga take us through their journey of building Manetain.
1) Please tell us about your business in a few words
Manetain is a one stop solution for all your hair care needs. We launched Manetain in 2018 with India’s first heat cap and now we have a wide variety of hair accessories and hair products like shampoo, conditioners etc. All our products are curly girl approved, which means that they were formulated keeping the special needs of curly and wavy hair in mind, but our products are amazing for all hair types. Our products do not contain any harsh chemicals such as sulphates, silicones, parabens, waxes, etc.
2) Where did you see the gap in the market?
Dearth for good quality hair products for curly hair. We struggled for years to find an Indian product that works for our curls and always had to order it from international stores. There is a gap in the market for products that work great for wavy and curly hair.
3) Do you think India has evolved to accept such a niche category of products?
Yes there is such a huge demand for products that help you embrace your natural hair. People are tired of straightening and heat damaging their hair.
4) How many products do you have in total?
We have 4 products and over 100 accessories specifically made for curly wavy hair.
5) What is your consumer base like? Give us a few examples
95% of our customers are females aged between 18 and 45. We are seeing a growing interest from men.
8) What is your take on influencers and how have they been effective for the brand
Influencers have been important in helping us grow our brand especially from the influencers from the curly hair community. We really believe influencers have helped our community grow and learn more about the curly girl method.
How was your experience on Shark Tank?
Everyone believes that when you enter the Shark Tank, you arrive with all the answers. In our case it was quite the opposite: being our first investor pitch (and facing investors), Shark Tank turned out to be a tremendous learning experience for us. We went through an array of emotions throughout from being extremely anxious to begin with to absolute elation when we finally received our offers.
9) What are the big plans for 2023?
Right now we are living in the love we have received post the airing of our Shark Tank episode. We are working on launching our stylers that would complete the entire hair care regime.
