Fueled by latest majority owner Puig, Kama Ayurveda is expanding beyond India and taking its holistic healing message to the U.K. later this 12 months.

Kama Ayurveda, founded in 2002 by Vivek Sahni, is India’s leading Ayurvedic beauty and wellness brand, and is a pillar of Puig’s growing wellness portfolio.

In June it plans to launch a direct-to-consumer site and open a physical space, the House of Kama, in central London within the autumn where customers will have the option to have interaction with the product; have hand, head and feet massages; and book appointments with Ayurvedic doctors for specialist advice on food regimen and well-being.

In an interview Sahni said the U.K. was the perfect market to kick off the brand’s international expansion.

“It’s a tourist city, but in addition a multicultural one, English-speaking and with a highly aware local clientele. It made sense,” he said. In line with Euromonitor, it’s the second largest European beauty market after Germany and is in the highest 10 worldwide.

Thomas James, chief brand officer of Area of interest Brands and Wellness at Puig, added that the U.K. “isn’t a conservative market. It’s open to innovation.”

The opening of Sephora earlier this month at Westfield London, and the rapid expansion of homegrown competitors SpaceNK, H Beauty and Boots are all evidence of U.K. demand, which stays strong despite the cost-of-living crisis within the country.

Sahni added that he wants Kama Ayurveda to be about education, and opening consumers’ eyes to the traditional Indian medical practice of Ayurveda, which is predicated on maintaining a balance between mind, body and soul through massage therapy, food regimen, herbal treatments, yoga and acupuncture.

Sahni, who traveled to Ayurveda’s home in Kerala, southern India, to research the practice and develop the products, described Kama as a “latest brand with an old story.”

His pitch is obvious. “This isn’t an anti-aging brand. We would like people to age in one of the best possible way.”

The skincare and hair care products are plant-based, and draw on botanical oils and blends, which Kama said are biodegradable, clean and based on centuries-old recipes from India.

Kama Ayurveda currently has 63 stand-alone stores, and 70 shop-in-shops across India, and said competition within the Ayurveda consumer space has grown considerably because it launched greater than 20 years ago, spurred by the pandemic.

James said that, going forward, the plan is to expand further within the U.K.

“The U.K. is a priority for us, but wish to see how Kama Ayurveda resonates with the local customer before we scale the business. We would like to take our time,” he said, adding the brand desires to “decode Ayurveda for the local customer, and make it easy to know.”

Puig, he added, was completely satisfied to take its time constructing Kama Ayurveda, and the Area of interest Brands and Wellness categories as a complete.

Puig originally purchased a minority stake in Kama Ayurveda in 2019, and took ownership of the brand last 12 months. “We desired to approach the wellness category differently and have an angle, and a robust message, with our skincare,” he said.