'Our strategy is fewer brands, deeper investment & sharper relevance to Indian consumers'

In India’s fast-evolving skincare market, legacy can be both - an advantage and a challenge. While decades of trust offer instant recognition, staying relevant in an era shaped by Gen Z sensibilities, ingredient transparency and digital-first discovery demands more than nostalgia. Few brands embody this paradox better than Lacto Calamine, a name that has lived in Indian households for generations.

Best known as the go-to solution for rashes, oily skin, and everyday skin irritation, Lacto Calamine is now stepping into a new phase of its journey. The iconic brand Piramal Consumer Healthcare has undergone a strategic refresh, one that its leadership insists is not about reinvention, but rediscovery.

To understand what that means in practice, Pitch Brand Talk caught up with Sai Ramana Ponugoti, Chief Executive Officer, Piramal Consumer Healthcare, to unpack the thinking behind the brand refresh, the expanded portfolio, and the company’s growth ambitions for the next five years.

A Brand Everyone Knows—But Must Relearn

“One of the most powerful things about Lacto Calamine is that I’ve yet to meet a consumer in India who doesn’t know the brand. Lacto Calamine has been trusted across generations”, says Ramana.

That universal awareness, however, also creates a unique challenge. While trust remains intact, consumer expectations have evolved dramatically—especially among younger cohorts who demand clarity on ingredients, efficacy, and purpose.

“The role of Lacto Calamine in skincare has remained consistent,” Ramana explains. “What’s evolving is how we articulate that expertise. The formula remains the same because it delivers the impact it is known for.”

At the heart of the refresh is a sharply defined positioning: Lacto Calamine as the ‘oily skin expert.’ It’s a bold claim, but one backed by a compelling insight—nearly one in two Indian consumers has oily skin, yet no brand, in India or globally, has owned this space with singular focus. That Ramana highlights is a key differentiator for the brand.

“That clarity is what differentiates us,” Ramana says. “We are not trying to be everything to everyone.”

Not Reinvention, but Rediscovery

The brand’s new identity is built around four strategic pillars. First is the sharp positioning—doubling down on oily skin expertise with confidence and authority. Second is transparent communication, ensuring that the brand’s trusted formulation is explained in a language that resonates with ingredient-conscious Gen Z consumers. Third is portfolio depth, expanding beyond the iconic lotion into a full skincare regimen aligned to cater to every need of the consumer. Finally, a growth agenda powered by omnichannel scale and digital influence to win the new-age consumer.

Ramana says, “This is a milestone moment for an iconic brand like Lacto Calamine. Our journey has already begun and the numbers tell us we’re on the right path.”

A Visual Refresh That Signals Change

One of the most noticeable aspects of the transformation is Lacto Calamine’s new packaging. The familiar purple bottle remains, but with a modern, minimalist aesthetic that signals evolution. Ramana emphasizes, “This wasn’t a cosmetic update. It’s a strategic reset.”

The refreshed visual identity focuses on clearer benefit storytelling and visual simplicity —while still retaining the brand’s iconic cues to strengthen brand recall and reinforce trust. Importantly, it bridges two generations: consumers who grew up with Lacto Calamine and younger users discovering it through digital platforms and community recommendations.

He says, “Our messaging lens remains consistent and is focused on three things - Confidence, control, and care for oily skin. This positioning allows the brand to build authority in a high-growth subcategory. We want to ensure that credibility and consistency help us win over consumers, because this matters more than the aesthetic-only beauty narratives.”

From One Product to a Full Regimen

The most significant shift is Lacto Calamine’s transformation from a single hero product into a complete skincare portfolio. The brand portfolio now spans cleansers, moisturisers, sunscreens, serums, and treatment formats— which Ramana calls the ‘Hero 5’ formats, designed to reflect real-world skincare routines. Ramana notes, “Consumers don’t use one product anymore. They follow regimens.” Yet, even as the portfolio expands, discipline remains key. He explains, “We want to be sharp on the portfolio. Though we have a wider portfolio online, we are focused on our ‘Hero 5’ on an omnichannel basis.”

Another key strategy is to stay true to its positioning as the oily skin expert and resist the temptation to chase other segments. He says, “We will stand for our equity and not move an inch beyond oily skin expertise. We are extremely clear that while other segments may be extremely tempting, in terms of size, we will stay sharp with our positioning. That clarity has been one of our biggest learnings.” He reiterates, “We are extremely consumer-centric and rooted in three consumer behaviors - ingredient-based decision-making, multi-step personalization, and ensuring efficacy to deliver consumers a superior product.”

He stated that the early results have been encouraging, with the refreshed lotion already in market and the rest of the portfolio transitioning to the new identity over the next few months.

Rethinking Digital: From Awareness to Purchase

In a category where discovery has shifted decisively from search to social, Lacto Calamine’s media strategy has evolved to reflect changing consumer journeys. “We’re building two core cultures internally—consumer centricity and digital-first thinking,” Ramana explains.

The company has moved away from broad-brush mass media towards sharply targeted digital campaigns. He says that as consumers simultaneously move from television to mobile, social, quick commerce, optimization is non-negotiable, with the mix now a balanced mix of digital and TV.

Today, the split of the overall spends is 60:40 between traditional and digital,  20–30% of overall spends are on digital, with some campaigns in certain categories like skincare going as high as 80% digital in certain cases. Platforms like Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, OTT, and connected TV play a key role—not just for awareness, but for driving direct purchase through marketplaces and quick commerce. Ramana explains, “In skincare, consumers discover, evaluate, and convert in a few clicks. We design for that entire full-funnel journey within the platform. For Lacto Calamine, we prioritized the direct path-to-purchase journey by driving traffic straight to marketplaces and quick commerce partners, rather than relying on basket-building behavior of the past.”

Influencers and collaborative ads are central to this approach, helping the brand tap into niche, highly engaged communities with credible, authentic conversion-driven recommendations.

Asked if the company will be upping its marketing spends Ramana says, “Yes, we are going after aggressive numbers, and our spends are catered to being able to deliver the growth.”

Consistency Across Channels, Credibility Across Cohorts

Maintaining brand equity across the consumer shopping journey across general trade, modern trade, e-commerce, and quick commerce is no small task—especially in an environment driven by discounts and rapid discovery.

For Lacto Calamine, the answer lies in consistent storytelling backed by education and advocacy across social platforms. For Lacto Calamine, the company is investing in digital storytelling, dermatologist-backed content, credible voices, and a carefully curated ambassador ecosystem (of over 1,000 influencers) that remain constant across channels, even as formats and shopping journeys vary.

Ramana adds, “Availability is non-negotiable. We are expanding availability across e-commerce, pharmacy, retail, cosmetic formats, modern trade, general trade. This aligns the brand with where India shops today, and where the next wave of skincare growth is expected. The brand must be where India shops today—and tomorrow.”

In December 2024, Piramal Consumer Healthcare roped in actor Mrunal Thakur as its brand ambassador for Lacto Calamine with whom the brand continues its association.

Power Brands and Performance Beyond Lacto Calamine

While Lacto Calamine remains the star, Piramal Consumer Healthcare’s broader portfolio—spanning Littles, i-Pill, Tetmosol, Polycrol, CIR and i-Active—continues to perform strongly. The company reported strong double-digit growth in FY25, crossing the ?1,000 crore revenue milestone and had coined a four-pronged mantra going ahead.

Ramana says, “Our strategy is power-brand-led growth with sharp portfolio focus. We have doubled down on our power brands which together have contributed to more than half of our sales. From oily skin to modern baby care to women's intimate hygiene and adult care; We’ve invested behind each brand with the intent of driving both scale as well as intent. So, fewer brands, deeper investment, and sharper relevance to Indian consumers across the segments.”

Innovation is another major driver. Nearly 50 new products across formats, need-states and price-points, were launched in the past year alone, contributing over 11% of revenue—underscoring innovation’s role as a growth engine, not just a buzzword. He states, “We operate with the heart of a startup, but the might of a science-based innovation growth engine.”

The third focus is on driving growth with precision in channels of the future with business from emerging and high-growth channels significantly growing in contribution. The final focus area is tech enablement for agility, which Ramana calls a game-changer, to aid analysis of data and enable faster calls across all the entire business chain.

Equally critical is education, particularly in healthcare categories. Ramana explains, “It is important to drive both education and brand building and balance the two. Our model is simple—learn, relate, and choose. We educate, we connect through storytelling, and we ensure affordability.”

The Road to FY30

Looking ahead, Piramal Consumer Healthcare has set ambitious goals. By FY30, the company aims to double its business and achieve double-digit EBITDA margins.

The roadmap rests on sales excellence across channels, disciplined revenue growth management, operational efficiency, and deep capability building—particularly in beauty, digital, and consumer insights.

“It’s all about margin, reach, and impact,” Ramana concludes.