Bentonite clay powder or multani mitti has traditionally been the go-to deep facial cleansing treatment option for many Indian women to combat open pores and acne. From featuring in home remedies to widely being used by major skincare labels, multani mitti has found its spot under the sun. When Ahmedabad-based businessman Sunil Jain—a supplier of bentonite clay powder to global brands through his company Marudhar Impex—realised the demand and potential of multani mitti, he decided to launch his own brand. That’s how MiNature, a wellness brand that sells DIY skincare and haircare kits, was born in 2017.
As its market share increased, MiNature started adding new products to its portfolio. Today, MiNature offers over 150 products ranging from dietary supplements to skincare, natural hair colours, face masks, and more to global customers. “With the launch of MiNature we wanted to bridge the gap between nature and modern lifestyle by creating all-natural wellness products. We are a young company with a young team and our aim is to help people lead a holistic and balanced life,” says Jain. Its best-selling products continue to be natural powders they first started with, including Fenugreek seed powder, Henna powder, Indigo Tinctoria powder, Aloe Vera powder, and purified Alum powder.
MiNature is one of the 4 startups featured on Amazon Global Selling's '#IndiaSeDuniyaTak' campaign, which spotlights Indian entrepreneurs reaching a global audience. We spoke to MiNature’s founder Sunil Jain to learn more about their journey.
Edited excerpts.
How MiNature’s journey started
We come from a land where some of the ingredients used in most natural skincare products are easily available and are of the highest quality. While the skincare category is huge now, the spike in interest for it was just picking up when we began in 2017. We were confident that if the product is good, the market will catch up. At first, our sales was all B2B— we would sell our products to international brands who would then sell it under their label. We noticed that our clients were enjoying a good run in their markets, so we decided to launch our own brand to sell directly to global customers. The first product we launched was bentonite clay or multani mitti. We began by selling in the U.S. and only started selling in India 3 years ago. Today we sell in 6 countries—US, Canada, Australia, Singapore, the UK, and India—on Amazon’s international sites with Amazon Global Selling. This journey has been surreal.
Creating awareness about Indian skincare, one step at a time
Today, there is growing awareness about how chemicals hamper your skin. Even the younger generations are more conscious about the ingredients being used in their skincare products. Very few brands deliver on the promise of being all-natural and that is where we come in.
For our global customers, who are not well aware of these natural ingredients, we take on the do-it-yourself or DIY route. Indian beauty secrets or recipes are popular around the world; we leverage that to say, for instance, how bentonite clay can be used on your face. We share steps that customers can follow to make a face mask at home. All of our messaging is around this DIY concept and our international customers love it. This concept also reassures customers of what exactly goes into their skincare.
Overcoming hurdles to build global presence with Amazon
Our journey has not been without challenges. For starters, there are stringent rules by the US’ Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) and the hurdles associated with selling in a different country. Amazon Seller Support makes the process easier. We were able to set up our product listing to sell in foreign lands while sitting here in India. Amazon’s account managers helped us a great deal especially during events, guiding us on how to change our advertising and giving us their expert advice on dos and don’ts. During sale events like Cyber Monday and Black Friday or even Prime Day in the US, we usually make about 3X our regular sales.
We also rely on the Fulfilled by Amazon (FBA) service, which allows third-party sellers to have Amazon fulfil orders on their behalf. We do not have a warehouse in the U.S. or other markets; Amazon takes charge of the orders and keeps customers satisfied with speedy deliveries and customer service. This takes away a lot of the logistics pressure.
Learnings along the way
One of the biggest learnings for MiNature has been consistency and patience. Starting on Amazon is easy, but consistency is a challenge. You cannot expect customers to buy everything the day or month you launch. For two years, our business was stagnant, but we now sell to about 20,000 customers per month with 60% sales coming from the U.S. You must be patient and have faith in your products to see the results. Also, make use of the tools and resources readily available to make your journey more seamless.
Amazon Global Selling has enabled over 125,000 registered exporters from 200+ cities across India to surpass $8 billion in cumulative exports since 2015. It also provides benefits such as free credits for advertising, brand registry, and Fulfilment by Amazon (FBA). If you’re an aspiring exporter, here’s a comprehensive guide to help small businesses become global exporters with Amazon.
Next, read how this entrepreneur from Srinagar is taking pashmina shawls and scarves to the world.
