Case Study: A hairstylist created a $11.7M brand

BBlunt, founded by celebrity hairstylist Adhuna Bhabani, has established itself as a premium, professional-grade haircare brand with a unique market position through salon-quality products tailored for Indian hair types and a strong digital and offline presence.

When you think of Preity Zinta, how do you imagine her hair? For me, it’s curly. But did you know? Before that, it was a norm in Bollywood to straighten the hair of the female lead. However, Zinta’s hair stylist was the first one who went against this norm. Her name is Adhuna Bhabani, who, with her brother Osh Bhabani, created BBlunt – now a $11.7M!

The founders built a reputation in Bollywood with styling for films, eventually expanding into retail with a line of hair care and styling products aimed at Indian hair types. Known for its innovative, salon-quality products, BBlunt has carved a niche in India’s hair care market, appealing especially to millennials who value high-performance and style-focused hair solutions​.

This positioning helped BBlunt establish a distinct identity, resonating with young, urban audiences looking for high-quality, professional-grade hair products that could deliver the “salon look” at home.

Founding Story

Adhuna, a renowned celebrity hairstylist, had already made a name for herself in the industry, styling many Bollywood stars, which helped her gain significant insight into the needs and preferences of consumers in the beauty space​. The brand bridgex the gap between the salon experience and at-home hair care by creating a product line that mirrored the expertise found in professional salons.

This vision was materialized through a range of products designed specifically for Indian hair types and styling preferences​. BBlunt’s initial offerings included a diverse array of hair care products, such as shampoos, conditioners, hair colors, and styling products.

Adhuna’s celebrity status and portfolio helped to build credibility and attract a loyal customer base​. In addition to its product line, BBlunt established a network of salons that emphasized high-quality hair care and styling. (more on this later)

In 2022, BBlunt was acquired by Ghazal Alagh’s Honasa Consumer Pvt. Ltd. for Rs. 134 Cr. This helped both brands:

• Digital Marketing and E-commerce Expertise:
  Honasa aims to utilize its strong capabilities in digital marketing to accelerate BBlunt’s growth.
  By tapping into Honasa’s established e-commerce channels, they plan to enhance online sales and customer engagement for BBlunt’s product line​.

• Strengthening Brand Positioning:
  The integration of BBlunt under Honasa’s umbrella aims to position it more strongly in the premium segment of the hair care industry.

• Maintaining Salon Heritage:
  While BBlunt’s product business will be fully managed by Honasa, the salon side will remain an independent entity.
  This allows BBlunt to maintain its unique brand heritage and continue providing professional salon experiences, which can be an advantage in marketing its products as they leverage the salon’s reputation and expertise​.

Overall, Honasa’s acquisition strategy for BBlunt reflects a broader trend of consolidation in the beauty and personal care sector, where companies seek to enhance their market share and operational efficiencies through strategic acquisitions.

STP Analysis

Segmentation

BBlunt segments its market based on various criteria, focusing primarily on:

• Demographics:
  The brand primarily targets young adults and millennials, particularly those aged 18-35. This group is often more experimental with their hair and style choices.

• Psychographics:
  BBlunt appeals to individuals who value quality and are influenced by fashion trends and celebrity endorsements. Their customers tend to be trend-conscious and are willing to invest in premium hair care products.

• Geographic:
  The brand focuses on urban areas in India, where consumers are more exposed to international beauty trends and have higher disposable incomes​.

Targeting

BBlunt uses differentiated marketing, targeting multiple segments with tailored strategies:

• Urban Millennials:
  BBlunt positions itself as a trendy and fashionable brand that resonates with their lifestyle.

• Professionals and Celebrities:
  By leveraging Adhuna Bhabani’s reputation in the fashion industry, BBlunt also targets professionals and celebrities who seek high-quality hair care solutions​.

• Salon Users:
  BBlunt not only sells products for home use but also caters to salon-goers by offering professional services, enhancing its credibility and appeal​.

Positioning

BBlunt positions itself as a premium hair care brand that combines salon-quality products with the expertise of top hairstylists. The key elements of its positioning include:

• Quality and Expertise:
  The brand emphasizes its connection to professional hairstyling and quality ingredients, ensuring consumers that they are getting salon-grade products​

• Innovative and Trendy: BBlunt is known for its innovative product formulations and trendy packaging, making it attractive to younger consumers looking for the latest in hair care​.

Competitor Analysis

For hair care in the Indian market, BBlunt, Streax, and L’Oréal serve distinct audiences with unique approaches. With its association with celebrity stylist Adhuna Bhabani and its in-salon experience, BBlunt attracts consumers looking for high-end, professional-grade products. However, its reach is largely urban, reinforcing a premium image but limiting accessibility.

Streax, in contrast, appeals to the mass market, emphasizing affordability, especially in hair color. It’s widely available across urban and rural areas, focusing on practicality rather than luxury, and is a popular choice among cost-conscious consumers.

L’Oréal offers products across various price ranges and needs, allowing it to dominate the market with accessibility and a broad product line. While L’Oréal brings trusted innovation with ingredients like keratin, its formulations are not as localized for Indian hair as BBlunt’s. BBlunt’s strength lies in its specialized, Indian-focused product offerings and professional brand image, setting it apart in a highly competitive market, even as it competes with the accessibility of Streax and the global appeal of L’Oréal.

Promotional Tactics

The company’s product portfolio includes hair colors, shampoos, conditioners, serums, dry shampoos, and styling products. BBlunt has over 20 salons across India, which offer direct and tactile points of interaction with the consumer.

Since they have already experienced the product professionally, they might want to replicate the results at home, and this is when BBlunt offers its products. They also have 3 academies for hairdressing, in Mumbai, Bangalore, and Kolkata. These help to boost the brand’s credibility.

Additionally, since 2018, they have also been focused on their digital strategy.

On Instagram, bbluntindia currently has 244K followers. The content strategy mostly revolves around promotional product posts and informational posts regarding various hair-related issues and tutorials:

With this, BBlunt combines both online and offline touchpoints, enhancing accessibility for their urban consumers.

In a Nutshell

BBlunt’s success as a premium haircare brand reflects the strength of a hybrid strategy that merges professional salon services with at-home care products. By emphasizing the founder’s credentials, leveraging multi-channel marketing, and focusing on Indian consumers’ unique needs, BBlunt has built a unique position in the haircare market.

Key Takeaways from BBlunt’s Marketing

• Leverage brand founders’ expertise to establish credibility and attract a niche customer base.
• Utilize micro-targeting in digital campaigns to maximize reach in key cities and among target demographics.
• Combine both online and offline touchpoints for a seamless customer experience, especially in urban settings.
• Align product offerings with specific local needs to create a unique market position.
• Create content strategies on social media that mix product promotion with educational, value-driven content.