Zareen Khan says Happy Hippie won’t slap fake marketing or claims on audiences

New Delhi: Actor-turned-entrepreneur Zareen Khan has officially entered the personal care market with her new brand Happy Hippie, which she describes as “skincare without the clutter.”

In an exclusive chat with BestMediaInfo.com, Khan emphasised that the launch was not a rushed celebrity-brand move but the result of a two-year process.

“This could have been launched earlier if I just wanted to launch something for the heck of it, just to have one brand in my name. But this is not that.

It is something I have consciously curated for people like me who want to take care of themselves, their skin, and their hair but want to do it in a happy, easy and effective manner rather than getting lost in the clutter that is right now being presented in the name of skincare,” she said.

Watch the full interview here: 

Affordable luxury

Happy Hippie products will be priced under Rs 1,000, with the most expensive currently at Rs 750. According to Khan, this was a deliberate decision to counter the perception that celebrity-led brands must be expensive.

“Of course, there’s always an expectation that if it’s a celebrity-driven brand, it will be expensive. But skincare products, the ingredients that go in skincare, do not need to be expensive,” she said.

“There are costly products in the market that go from Rs 5,000 to Rs 50,000 per cream. If I can achieve the same quality for Rs 500 and it’s doing the same thing for my skin, then why would I sell something for Rs 50,000? A Rs 50,000 cream can sometimes not be as effective as a Rs 500 one.”

Khan insisted the pricing also reflects current economic realities. “We are living in a very economically challenging time. If I am saying I’ve created something that I want to share with my audience, I can’t be pricing it at Rs 5,000 because then it conflicts with what I’m trying to say,” she said.

“I want this to reach as many people as possible and help as many people as possible who want good skin but somehow find it difficult to afford or don’t know where to start.”

The debut range launched by the brand features a face wash, a hydration cream, a face serum, and a hair oil.

Target group

The products are aimed at a wide user base, from those just starting their skincare journey to people in their late 40s or early 50s. “Everyone who wants to take care of their skin,” Khan said, adding that the line works for most skin types.

Marketing approach

For now, the brand’s marketing is limited to Khan’s interviews and personal outreach. “Right now, I am just doing these interviews to let people at least know that I am coming out with my brand. Once they know, I think the job is done. I’m not here to force my product on people. If they like it, they will be part of the community,” she said.

Currently, Happy Hippie is only available through the brand’s own website, but Khan has plans to expand. “Eventually, we plan to take it to marketplaces, to quick commerce, to e-commerce and even to international markets. I want to reach as many people as possible so that I can help as many people as possible with this little something I have created,” she said.

Avoiding the celebrity brand trap

In a market increasingly sceptical of celebrity-backed beauty labels, Khan is keen to distance her approach from what she calls “launching something for the heck of it” or relying on “already existing formulations”.

According to Khan, all Happy Hippie products are based on new formulations developed over months of research and testing. “That’s why it took me so much time to even launch it, because testing has been done for three months, six months, a year. Every time a product comes out, it is going to be need-based and requirement-based,” she explained.

She is realistic about scrutiny. “If there is going to be scrutiny, then it will happen. No one has been able to escape that,” she said.

The team remains small, with marketing support coming from a few associates. “I’m not looking to do extensive marketing or fake marketing or fake claims and just slap things on the audience’s face. I’m here to create a community of like-minded people who face similar struggles, who want to live life, and who want to take care of themselves in an easy, effective, happy manner,” she added.