How Minimalist started

Mohit Yadav and Rahul Yadav founded Minimalist in 2020, entering the skincare market with a very specific pitch aimed at a customer who had grown tired of vague promises: tell me exactly what is in the bottle, and how much of it.

The problem they saw

Much of the skincare sold in India, as elsewhere, was marketed through brand stories, fragrance, and packaging rather than through clear information about active ingredients and their concentrations. A growing number of skincare-conscious customers, many of whom had started researching ingredients online themselves, wanted straightforward products built around known actives at effective concentrations, without unnecessary additives or elaborate marketing dressing up a fairly simple formula.

What they sold first

Minimalist launched with skincare products built around single, well-known active ingredients, clearly labelled with concentration percentages so customers could understand exactly what they were buying and why. Serums featuring specific actives were central to the early range, positioned less as beauty products and more as straightforward, almost clinical formulations aimed at customers who already understood what they were looking for.

The decisions that mattered

Naming products after their key active ingredient and its percentage, rather than giving them evocative marketing names, was a deliberate break from convention. It signalled to a specific, informed customer base that this brand was speaking their language rather than trying to sell them a story.

The company relied heavily on ingredient education in its content and marketing, treating customers as capable of understanding formulation details rather than simplifying everything into vague benefit claims. This built credibility with an audience that had often researched ingredients extensively before ever visiting the website.

Minimalist grew primarily online, where detailed product information and ingredient explanations could be presented fully, in a way that would be difficult to convey through a shelf display or short in-store pitch.

What a small brand can take from this

Being blunt and specific with informed customers can be more persuasive than a polished, generic marketing story, especially in categories where those customers have already done considerable research themselves.

Naming and presenting a product honestly, even if it sounds less glamorous, can become its own kind of brand identity if it matches the way your specific customer thinks.

Trusting your audience with detail rather than simplifying everything into a slogan can build a deeper, more loyal relationship, particularly with buyers who value substance over story.

If your customers care about substance over spin, you can build a store that gives them the detail they want with early access.

Varchas Stores is not affiliated with Minimalist. This is an editorial story based on public reporting, written for founders who are starting out.