How Pratha Naturals is Changing the Face of Green Beauty in India

As consumer preferences shift towards sustainable and ethically produced skincare, one startup is making waves by bridging traditional wellness with scientific innovation. Pratha Naturals and Handmade, founded by chemical engineer Soniya Gaikwad, is redefining clean beauty with a range of plant-based, cold-processed products built on the principles of authenticity, quality, and environmental consciousness.

From Global Engineering to Green Entrepreneurship
Hailing from Maharashtra’s Buldhana district, Soniya Gaikwad’s journey began in a Marathi-medium school and led to a BTech in Chemical Engineering from UDCT Amravati in 2012. After gaining global industry experience as a process and control engineer across the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Germany, and Singapore, she decided to pivot towards her long-standing interest in skincare formulation.

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“In school, I had once tried making soap from scratch—it was a failed experiment, but it stayed with me. Years later, I wanted to revisit that curiosity with a scientific approach,” said Gaikwad.

Her desire to offer safe, natural alternatives in a chemical-heavy cosmetics market led to the incorporation of Pratha Naturals and Handmade in 2015. The brand’s name, ‘Pratha,’ meaning ‘elegantly traditional,’ reflects its mission to combine time-honoured ingredients with validated, modern skincare science.

Pratha Naturals: Bootstrapped Beginnings, Science-Backed Formulations

Over the next three years, Soniya dedicated herself to R&D, focusing on cold-processed soaps using ingredients that have been in use for centuries. The formulation process was intricate and time-intensive—each soap bar takes 21 days to cure and is designed to deliver both aesthetic appeal and therapeutic benefits.

Pratha Naturals was launched as a fully bootstrapped venture, with production, packaging, and marketing handled internally at a rented facility in Pune. Backed by a multidisciplinary advisory panel—including dermatologists, Ayurvedacharyas, beauticians, and chemical experts like Ensim Solutions founder Dinesh Pakade—Pratha Naturals began distributing samples to friends and family after successful lab tests.

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Establishing Manufacturing and Regulatory Compliance
After managing operations remotely from Saudi Arabia during the pilot phase, Soniya returned to India in early 2020 to scale the venture. A 3,000 sq. ft. facility was set up in Gujarwadi, Pune, designed to meet Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards. In January 2021, the company received its manufacturing license, formalising its entry into commercial production.

The facility houses an in-house laboratory for quality checks, with products also sent to certified FDA-approved labs in Pune and Aurangabad. These labs perform microbiological, physical, chemical, and toxicological tests, ensuring full regulatory compliance.

Scaling Operations and Building Brand Identity
From 25 SKUs in 2015 to 78 in 2023, Pratha Naturals has seen steady growth. The company’s initial sales came through social media marketing, followed by onboarding on major e-commerce platforms. However, the leadership recognised early limitations in outsourcing digital marketing and chose to build an in-house team to maintain brand alignment and product storytelling.

“As a policy, we prioritize hiring women. Our team has grown from five to twelve in just a year. We believe in nurturing talent internally and offering a workplace driven by purpose,” said Gaikwad.

The brand has also assisted 23 emerging cosmetic labels with private labelling and testing services, becoming a trusted partner for quality-focused product development.

Market Strategy and Expansion Plans
With product development and internal systems stabilised, Pratha Naturals is now focused on expanding its market reach. While online marketplaces currently drive a portion of sales, the company is preparing to enter offline retail through pop-up stores, factory outlets, supermarkets, and malls.

“Offline retail offers better conversion and customer retention—up to 80%, compared to just 3% online,” noted Gaikwad. “We’re also exploring export opportunities, especially in Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.”

The brand is empanelled with ONGC and has previously collaborated with the Bank of India for corporate gifting. It also plans to participate in government tenders for premium handmade soaps, particularly those meeting Grade 1 quality benchmarks, such as a high Total Fatty Matter (TFM) percentage for superior moisturising properties.

Pratha Naturals’ growing credibility had earned Soniya Gaikwad a place in the Cornell Maha60 Accelerator Program, an initiative sponsored by the Department of Industries, Government of Maharashtra. “The program gave me access to global business insights and peer collaborations that will be instrumental in scaling the company further,” she said.