Brands
Naos India names Sanjay Sahu area MD: a new chapter for Bioderma’s growth story
MUMBAI: Naos India has announced the promotion of Sanjay Sahu to area managing director, Naos India (Bioderma), recognising his sharp strategic mind, dynamic leadership, and knack for driving stellar growth. With over two decades of industry experience, Sahu has been the force behind Bioderma’s impressive rise in India’s booming dermo-cosmetic market.
Sahu’s promotion isn’t just a pat on the back—it’s a mandate to make waves across south Asia, including Nepal, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. His mission? To unlock new growth, expand market access, and supercharge Bioderma’s doctor-led and digital-first models.
“I’m honoured to step into this role at such a transformative time,” Sahu said. “With our commitment to ecobiology and innovation, we’re set to redefine skincare for consumers while scaling accessibility and digital engagement.”
Under Sahu’s watch, Bioderma has become a star performer for Naos India, recording strong sales growth and market share gains. His playbook? Smart strategy, disciplined execution, and a relentless focus on innovation. Now, with his eyes on south Asia, Sahu will tap into new markets while staying true to Bioderma’s roots in ecobiology—a science-meets-skincare philosophy that respects the skin’s natural balance.
Naos, a pioneer in active cosmetics, is more than just a skincare brand. Founded in 1977 by pharmacist-biologist Jean-Noël Thorel, the company’s mantra—ecobiology—views skin as a living ecosystem, not a problem to be fixed. With its global footprint across 100 countries, including powerhouse brands Bioderma, Institut Esthederm, and Etat Pur, Naos continues to redefine skincare with science-backed solutions.
For Sahu, the challenge now is clear—scale new heights while staying true to the brand’s roots. With his track record, the future looks bright for Bioderma in South Asia.
Brands
E-commerce growth rises, but profits come under pressure
Shop Culture flags rising costs, weak systems and a $5.38 billion quick-commerce boom reshaping global retail
MUMBAI: E-commerce is booming, but profits are thinning. A new report by Shop Culture warns that brands clinging to outdated, growth-at-all-costs strategies are being outpaced in a costlier, more complex 2025 landscape.
Global online retail is expected to cross $6.86 trillion this year, with 2.77 billion shoppers making at least one purchase. Yet returns are under strain: average return on ad spend has slipped to 2.87:1, exposing cracks in how brands chase scale without building sustainable margins.
Three shifts are rewriting the rules. First, retail media is getting pricier, with Amazon’s average cost per click rising 15.5 per cent year-on-year to $1.12. Second, while 77 per cent of e-commerce professionals now use AI daily, many see limited gains as weak systems blunt its impact. Third, geography is no longer expansion, it is strategy. The share of Shop Culture clients operating across multiple markets has more than doubled, from 30 per cent in 2024 to 65 per cent in 2025.
Subarna Mukherjee, founder and ceo, Shop Culture, is blunt: “The e-commerce industry has a nostalgia problem. In 2022, the playbook was simple: list aggressively, spend on ads, and ride the wave of post-pandemic digital adoption. It worked. Revenue grew rapidly. But by 2025, the industry is seeing the consequences of those structural shortcuts. E-commerce itself is not slowing down, the challenge lies in how brands are operating within it.”
Nowhere is the shift sharper than in India’s quick-commerce boom. The segment is set to hit $5.38 billion in 2025, growing 17 per cent and emerging as the fastest-growing globally. What began as a convenience play is fast becoming a margin buffer. In one case, quick commerce drove 70 per cent of a packaged food brand’s online revenue, delivering 130 per cent year-on-year growth. A beauty brand, meanwhile, saw selling prices rise 25 per cent higher than on traditional marketplaces.
Expansion, too, is being rethought. The report argues that brands chasing the largest markets first often stumble. Better outcomes come from sequencing entries based on efficiency, regulatory readiness and competition, with markets such as the UK and Germany offering smarter entry points than the United States.
Compliance has turned from a checkbox into a revenue lever, especially in Europe. Brands with ready frameworks can go live in 8 to 12 weeks, while others risk delays of six months or more due to listing and documentation hurdles.
AI, for all the hype, is no silver bullet. Across more than 1,500 listings, it improved conversion rates by 10 to 15 per cent, cut TACOS by 7 to 10 per cent and reduced stockouts by 20 per cent, but only when layered on strong foundations. As Mukherjee puts it: “AI is not a growth strategy, it is an amplifier. It enhances strong systems and exposes weak ones.”
The message for 2026 is stark. Growth alone will not save brands. Margins, discipline and smarter strategy will. In a market still expanding at breakneck speed, the real race is no longer for scale, it is for survival.
