Brands
Pakka Ltd & Brawny Bear launch energy bars with compostable flexible packaging
Mumbai: Pakka Ltd, a compostable packaging solutions manufacturer, has announced its second collaboration with Brawny Bear, a nutrition company known for its date-based healthy food products. Through this partnership, the brand has launched date energy bars, an energy bar with compostable flexible packaging.
The new date energy bars, produced by Brawny Bear, are packaged using Pakka Ltd’s innovative compostable flexible packaging. This innovative product not only offers a healthy snack option but also addresses the growing concern of packaging waste in India.
Pakka Ltd’s venture into compostable flexible packaging is a natural progression for the company, which has spent four decades producing compostable pulp, paper packaging solutions and moulded tableware. This move into adaptable packaging form reflects the company’s response to modern consumer needs for convenience, versatility, and cost-effectiveness.
Containing no added sugars, the energy bars are made with premium dates, aligning with Brawny Bear’s commitment to creating nutritious, naturally sweetened products. This launch expands Brawny Bear’s existing range of date-based food products, which includes chocolates, chikki, nut butter, milkshake/energy powders, and natural sweeteners.
The latest association comes after Pakka Ltd and Brawny Bear collaborated for the first time in October 2023 to launch the world’s first compostable flexible packaging for food products, setting a new standard in the industry for eco-friendly packaging solutions.
Pakka Ltd India business head Jagdeep Hira commented, “Our partnership with Brawny Bear for these date energy bars exemplifies our ongoing commitment to developing sustainable packaging solutions. By combining our compostable flexible packaging with Brawny Bear’s healthy snacks, we’re not only offering consumers a nutritious option but also taking a significant step towards reducing packaging waste. This product line demonstrates that eco-friendly packaging and convenient, tasty snacks can go hand in hand.”
Further, Brawny Bear founder Shivaam Tibrewal added, “We’re delighted to further our collaboration with Pakka Ltd through the new product. Our date energy bars, now wrapped in compostable packaging, represent the perfect fusion of health and sustainability. This launch aligns perfectly with our mission to provide delicious, date-based products that are good for both our customers and the environment. We believe this sets a new benchmark for responsible snack manufacturing in India.”
Brands
Estée Lauder to shed 10,000 jobs as new boss bets on digital shift
The cosmetics giant raises its profit outlook but stays silent on a possible merger with Spain’s Puig, as job cuts deepen and a three-year sales slump weighs on the turnaround
NEW YORK: Stéphane de La Faverie is not done cutting. Estée Lauder announced on Friday that it plans to eliminate as many as 3,000 additional jobs, taking its total redundancy programme to as many as 10,000 roles, up from a previous target of 7,000 announced a year ago. The company, which owns La Mer, The Ordinary, Tom Ford, and Aveda, employs roughly 57,000 people worldwide. The mathematics of what is now being contemplated is stark.
The fresh round of cuts is expected to generate a further $200 million in savings, bringing the total annual savings from the programme to as much as $1.2 billion before taxes. That money, De La Faverie has made clear, will be ploughed back into the turnaround.
A CEO in a hurry
De La Faverie, who took the helm in January 2025, inherited a company that had endured three consecutive years of annual sales declines. His response has been to move fast and cut deep. A significant portion of the latest redundancies reflects his push to reduce headcount at US department stores, long a cornerstone of Estée Lauder’s distribution model but now a channel in structural decline. In their place, he is accelerating the shift toward faster-growing online platforms, including Amazon.com and TikTok Shop, a pivot that is reshaping not just where Estée Lauder sells but how it thinks about its customers.
The numbers are moving in the right direction
Despite the pain, there are signs the medicine is working. Estée Lauder raised its profit outlook for the remainder of the fiscal year, guiding for adjusted earnings per share in the range of $2.35 to $2.45, above analyst estimates and a notable step up from the $2.05 to $2.25 range it had guided for in February. Organic net sales growth is expected to come in at 3 per cent, the company said, at the high end of the range it set out in February.
The share price tells a mixed story. After De La Faverie took charge, the stock surged nearly 60 per cent, buoyed by investor optimism that a longtime company insider could finally arrest the decline. But 2026 has been rougher: the shares have fallen 27 per cent this year, weighed down by disappointing February results and the overhang of unresolved merger talks with Spanish beauty giant Puig Brands SA. The company gave no additional details about those discussions on Friday, leaving the market to guess.
Silence on Puig
The proposed tie-up with Puig remains the most consequential unknown hanging over Estée Lauder. A deal with the Barcelona-based group, which owns brands including Carolina Herrera and Rabanne, would reshape the global luxury beauty landscape. But with nothing new to say and a turnaround still very much in progress, De La Faverie is asking investors to trust the process.
Three years of sales declines, 10,000 job cuts, and a merger that may or may not happen. At Estée Lauder, the overhaul has barely started.
