'Indian Nutraceuticals Industry Has Been Growing At 25% Annually During Pandemic' Mohit Bhatia, Founder, Physiovits
Tell us about Physiovits? What was the reason behind the inception & the journey so far?
Mohit Bhatia: We saw that there was lack of awareness around the health benefits of nutraceutical supplements in the majority of Indian sector and these were considered more for fitness & gym enthusiasts only and nutritional deficiencies were becoming more and more common in households with lack of balanced diet intake. The pandemic exposure brought this gaps in the upper segment even more to the forefront and we thought to cover up the existing gaps with our products targeted for each system of the body.
There are 4 founders - Dr Mohit Bhatia, Dr Harsimram Kaur, and Amol Sehgal have medical and associated backgrounds. Paras is an experienced digital marketer and engineering post-graduate.
What are your offerings? How these are benefiting consumers to improve their health? Who is your targeted audience?
Amol Sehgal: The USP is the element of clinical evidence based compositions with founders having the scientific knowledge and orientation to see the gaps in existing products and optimising the ingredient selections for best possible outcomes.Also, each of our product is being targeted to a specific body system role and improving the functions of the specific systems. In India, there are several startup competitions in this segment with brands like Fast & Up, Plix, OZIVA Nutrition, Supp, Nutrova, Nutrabay etc and globally the major players like Amway Nutrilite, Herbalife, Nnow etc.
What is the future of the nutraceutical industry in the Indian Landscape?
Mohit Bhatia: The Indian Dietary Supplement Market was valued USD 4 Billion in FY2020 and is predicted to grow at CAGR of 17.28% until FY2026, to reach USD 11 Billion by FY2026. Besides, the global market in the nutraceuticals space is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 8% in five years from now till 2025 and reach 500 Billion USD. In India, nutraceuticals are expected to have a worldwide market share of at least 3.5 percent by 2023. The nutraceutical industry in India accounts for 2% of the world economy at USD 388 trillion. Increased health responsiveness has contributed to this shift in consumerism towards nutraceuticals. Considering the ongoing lifestyle and public health scenario, people are looking for solutions to relieve stress, improve their lifestyle and health, and are inclined towards trying nutraceuticals products. Nutraceutical products act as efficient agents in lowering obesity, enhancing skin, and also have contributions in cancer treatments. The penetration of the nutraceutical market in India is just above 10 per cent at the all-India level. While it is 22.51 per cent in urban India, it is merely 6.32 per cent in rural India. Currently, the Indian market imports more than it exports; US$1.5 billion in exports and importing US $2.7 billion worth of nutraceuticals. The market is expected to grow at a significant 22% CAGR by 2023. The Indian nutraceuticals industry has been growing at 25% annually during the pandemic.
The market is very competitive and with increasing investor in this segment the market is expanding at more than expected pace. For a bootstrapped brand like Physiovits, maintaining growth and increasing customer traction is going to be the biggest challenge and opportunity.
We have a plethora of brands that are already in the market with the same offerings, what are your game plan to fit in the market?
Amol Sehgal: Currently, the brand is doing sales of GMV 2 Lakhs/Month, and is expected to be 5X before the end of this year, and 7-8X by the end of this financial year. Currently the offline base is present in Delhi-NCR, few cities of western UP and is expanding to cover Punjab and Chandigarh Tricity by Sept. 2021. The online channel tie ups are in progress and already the brand has started making sales on certain marketplaces like Amazon, Flipkart etc.
The goal is to have a complete range of nutraceuticals in 12-18 months. We plan to have an omnichannel presence through modern stores and standalone boutique stores in a few cities in the next three to four years
What are the future plans for funding and expansion? Any plan to launch physical stores?
Mohit Bhatia: The future growth plans are to optimise the Online presence across India, through tie ups with ecommerce players and several nutritional clubs. Offline growth is planned for Northern and Eastern India for this year. The target is end the financial year with a monthly GMV of 10-12 Lakhs INR and take it to 50 Lakhs INR monthly GMV in the next 2-3 years.
Currently , the founders have pooled money from the promoters of the company, their self funds and a few friends' funds to a tune of 22.5 Lakhs INR for product portfolio and ecommerce operations launch. Currently we are generating a revenue of 50K/month from the operations which is expected to reach 2.5 Lakhs by Sept end. The current source of revenue is from the product sales in offline distribution channels (Medical Practitioners, Dieticians, Nutritionists etc) & online marketplaces. The expectation is to reach a revenue scale of 5-10 Lakhs INR profitability (GMV of 30-50 Lakhs) and then go into the funding from external sources to increase growth trajectory.
Currently, the team is 7 members strong and is growing by 1-2 members every month. The founders have a medical and associated backgrounds apart from one co-founder who is an experienced digital marketer & engg. post graduate. 3 of the founders have been associated together in the launch and growth of D2C brand, Fuschia , dealing in Natural Handmade Skincare Segment and the new team joinee Dr Amol Sehgal, is an experienced pharmacovigilance professional with work experience in several MNCs.
Which products were the most demanding during the pandemic?
Amol Sehgal: Omega 3,6,9, Vitamin C and Multivitamin Packs were the most demanded products during the pandemic. And even now we have seen an upsurge in growth because the population is aware and conscious about their health. Our USP is that we provide the Vegetarian source of Omega 3 6 9, Flax Seeds Softgel capsules. Secondly, we have launched a combination of Calcium with
Vitamin D3, Zinc & Magnesium tablets, thus making sure the absorption rate is optimal. The most popular products are an Omega 3-6-9 supplement derived from flaxseed oilin a dose of 1000 mg, and immunity booster sachets that are even suitable for kids above two years of age.
