| Lakmé | |
| Type: | Private |
| Founders: | |
| Location Country: | India |
| Area Served: |
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| Key People: | Vipul Chaturvedi, CEO |
| Industry: | Personal care and Beauty salon |
| Products: | Cosmetics, beauty products, and Salon services |
| Parent: |
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Lakmé is an Indian cosmetics brand owned by Hindustan Unilever. It was named after the French opera Lakmé, which itself is the French word for the goddess Lakshmi who is renowned for her beauty. It was started in 1952 as a 100% subsidiary of Tata Oil Mills, when Simone Tata was concerned that Indian women were spending precious amounts on foreign beauty products and persuaded JRD Tata to manufacture them in India. Tata also took support from Indian Government. Simone Tata joined the company as director and went on to become chairperson.[1] In 1998, Tatas sold their stake in Lakmé to Hindustan Unilever[2] for .[3]
Lakmé mainly sells coloured cosmetic products such as lipsticks, eyeliners and skincare cream. In December 2018, it launched its e-commerce platform.[4] [5] As of 2021, Lakmé also runs 485 beauty salons under Lakmé Lever.[6] The company is the title sponsor for Lakmé Fashion Week (LFW), a bi-annual fashion week which takes place in Mumbai.[7]
Lakmé has Shraddha Kapoor, Kajol Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, and Ananya Pandey as brand ambassadors.[8] [9] [10] In the Brand Trust Report 2012, Lakme was ranked 104th among India's most trusted brands, and the following year it was ranked 71st on the list. In 2014, Lakme was ranked 36th among India's most trusted brands according to the Brand Trust Report 2014.[11] In 2022, it has been ranked as the 27th most trusted brands in India according to the Brand Trust Report 2022.[12]