Brands
Abnd gives a fresh nappy twist to Growgether’s brand birth
MUMBAI: Abnd, the brand brains behind some of India’s sharpest consumer identities, has helped Rimashi Lifestyle deliver its latest bundle of joy — Growgether, a clever new parent-and-baby care brand born from the ethos of “Raising Better.”
More than just bibs and baby wipes, Growgether positions itself as a full-blown support system for modern parenting — part smart essentials, part warm, fuzzy community. The name, a playful portmanteau of “growing together,” signals the brand’s mission to grow with parents, not just their tiny tots.
From verbal flair to visual cuddle, Abnd built the brand ground up — developing a strategy, identity and packaging suite that plays nice with both sensibilities and style.
“Working on building Growgether has been a deeply meaningful collaboration,” said Abnd founder-partner Kunal Vora. “The brand’s focus on raising better parents as a pathway to raising better children and ultimately communities, is both timely and transformative, and we’re proud to have helped bring that vision to life.”
“Parenting isn’t about perfection-it’s about evolving, learning, and showing up every day. At Growgether, we endeavour to redefine what it means to raise a child by first empowering the caregivers who shape their world. Because when parents are supported, they are truly enabled and children flourish. Our products, community, and tools aren’t just for children; they’re for the parents who nurture them, worry over them, and love them fiercely, often while doubting themselves. This is at the heart of Growgether and our Raising Better initiative,” said Growgether co-founder & CEO Daman Gill.
“We created Growgether after living through the beautiful mess that is new parenthood ourselves. The sleepless nights, the 3 AM doubts, the flood of unsolicited advice, and the moments when you feel completely alone. We wanted to build a space filled with warmth, understanding , and the reassurance every new parent deserves. Every product we design, every resource we share, is our way of gently reminding you: ‘You’re doing better than you think.’ Growgether isn’t just a brand-it’s the village we all wish we had,” said Growgether co-founder and chief product officer Ritika Gill.
Growgether has quietly soft-launched on a few e-commerce shelves, with a broader rollout and a shiny new D2C website expected soon.
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.
