Antinorm is a new-age D2C beauty and personal care brand built for fast-moving Indian consumers seeking high-performance, multi-functional solutions. Founded by Aparna Saxena, the brand is rooted in the philosophy of “un-complicating beauty” by creating utility-first formulations that simplify routines without compromising results. Designed specifically for Indian skin, climates, and lifestyles, Antinorm products address real-world stressors such as heat, humidity, and pollution through thoughtful, science-backed innovation.
In a conversation with FE BrandWagon Online, Aparna Saxena, Founder of Anti-Norm, says, “I have always been a skincare enthusiast, and through extensive research, I realized that women were using multiple products yet none truly worked for them. This insight shaped Anti-Nom’s philosophy of delivering effective results without overwhelming consumers.”
She sayss, “We can’t build for the market; it builds for you. Our goal is to create products that are loyal companions in everyday routines, tailored for modern Indian women, and eventually recognized globally for their efficacy and innovation.” (Edited Excerpts)
Q. What inspired Anti-Nom’s ‘simplification without sacrifice’ philosophy, and how does it align with the shift away from multi-step routines and evolving consumer behaviour?
I have made the journey from the VC world to the founder’s world, allowing me to combine my understanding of the industry with identifying gaps, which led me to conduct extensive research including speaking to a room full of women about their skincare routines. This insight shaped Anti-Nom’s core philosophy of ‘simplification without sacrifice’, focused on delivering effective results without overwhelming consumers.
The market has undergone significant shifts over the years. At Anti Norm, we are focused on capturing the next shift between 2026-2030, which will be driven by multifunctionality and high-performance products. Our vision extends beyond this period as once consumers try the product, they return, building a base of loyal customers that will last us longer than any trend.
We believe you cannot create a superior product with inferior packaging. Many skincare products are designed in ways that aren’t practical, for instance, jars require repeated hand contact, which can be inconvenient and less hygienic. Our products are packaged in an airless bottle that makes it very efficient to use.
In addition to that, we aim to reduce recurring packaging costs for our customers so all of our products have refillable capacity. Also, refills are better for the environment. In this initiative, all the plastic used for packaging is recyclable as well.
It wouldn't align with our brand if we promote luxury in less while pushing excessive packaging materials in the market.
Q. How is the shift from multi-step skincare routines to single-product solutions reshaping your business model and average basket sizes, and how are you ensuring high efficacy with fewer ingredients?
As routines move from four or five steps to one or two, the business model shifts alongside. Basket sizes may reduce, but purchase frequency tends to rise, driven by formats that deliver more in less time. Over time, this builds steadier, more predictable revenue through repeat use rather than one-time stocking.
What remains limited in the market is true multifunctionality, products that consistently deliver visible results without layering. That gap is beginning to shape a distinct category of its own.
Maintaining performance with fewer ingredients then becomes central. The focus is on a small set of high-quality, functional inputs, with minimal reliance on fillers or excess additives. Recent launches reflect this direction, with tightly edited formulations and an effort to simplify further.
This thinking also extends to fragrance. Choosing to avoid artificial perfume, even in categories where it is standard, is a conscious trade-off, placing ingredient integrity above convention.
Q. How has building for Indian environmental stressors shaped your products, and which product has emerged as a standout performer as you scale globally?
The products are developed on the sole principle of exposure to external environmental stressors such as heat, dirt, pollution and other environmental factors. As a result, Indian women face pigmentations, dull skin, frizzy hair and other issues. To address these issues, the products are derma tested to ensure their multifunctionality.
As we have built them for extreme conditions in India,these products are not limited by geography. They include ingredients like niacinamide, aloe, and other natural substances that work on all skin types.
‘Facial in a flash’ has been our standout product. It performed strongly since its launch, partly because it was developed for a personal need which then translated into a product. Designed for daily use, especially after exposure to sun, heat and pollution with key ingredients like papaya extract, aloe and niacinamide. It has seen a strong consumer response and repeated usage.
Q. Who is your core consumer today, how has the actual buyer profile evolved from your initial hypothesis, and which marketing channels have delivered the strongest ROI?
Our consumer base is quite broad. However, 65% of our sales come from women over the age of 35.. Anti Norm is a new concept, nothing like in the market. So, our assumption was that the first adoption would come largely from Gen Z. But then we realised as we built for the busy women of India, women over the age of 35 responded far more strongly.
In the early phases, Meta was our primary marketing channel, particularly through organic content. We saw a lot of traction on our social media platforms, which helped us better understand and connect with our customers.
The core focus of our brand is to solve problems for the busy women of India who say they don't have a product for themselves.
So far we have tried and tested mostly employee-led content and it delivered strong results for our brand. We don't delve into large influencer campaigns, as our focus remains solely on organic engagement.
Q. How are you allocating capital across D2C, marketplaces, and offline as you scale omnichannel, and how does this compare to industry benchmarks? Also, what drove investor confidence in Anti Norm, and how is the capital being deployed?
As we scale omnichannel, the way we allocate capital hasn’t changed drastically since the cost structures across D2C, marketplaces, and offline are fairly similar. We started as a 100% e-commerce brand, moved to about 80% D2C and 20% marketplaces, and are now gradually building a more balanced omnichannel presence. Quick commerce, in particular, is showing strong early traction for us.
We invest around 30–35% of our revenue into marketing and customer acquisition, primarily into D2C performance and creator-led content, followed by marketplaces, with a smaller portion going into offline experiences. Each channel has a clear role in helping us grow while also building long-term brand recall.
Early on, we saw around 35% growth, largely driven by strong R&D and a very data-led approach. That, along with our focus on simplifying beauty through multifunctional products, really clicked with investors.
Today, we’re deploying capital across product development, brand building, distribution, and team making sure we scale, but in a way that’s sustainable.
Since launching in July, winning the Estée Lauder grant and being featured on Shark Tank have been big milestones. On a personal level, it’s been incredibly rewarding to see the vision come to life and resonate with consumers.
Q. What’s your current run rate, growth, and margins and how are retention and repeat trends shaping up?
Beauty is a high-margin category, but it’s also one where brands can burn a lot of cash chasing growth. For us, it’s always been about getting the product right first, and then scaling in a more measured way.
Right now, we’re seeing around 80% gross margins and about 35% month-on-month growth since launch. We did ₹25 lakh in revenue in our first month, which gave us strong early validation. Retention is already crossing 20% for some product cohorts, which is quite encouraging at this stage.
What’s been most exciting, though, is the repeat behaviour—we’re seeing people come back and buy again. That’s a strong signal that the product is actually working and resonating, which matters far more in the long run than just acquiring users.
