Beardo sells the idea that a bottle of oil can change the beard you were born with. On 2 August 2024 India’s advertising regulator looked at exactly that promise on Beardo’s own website, and struck part of it down. Two years later, the same product page still promises a thicker, fuller beard in four to six weeks. This audit sets the ruling, the page and the price side by side.
The brand is also no longer the Ahmedabad start-up its story suggests. Marico Limited owns all of it, and is in the middle of dissolving the company that held it.
Beardo is a Marico brand, 100% owned since 1 July 2020, with disclosed turnover of ₹214.17 crore in FY2025. Its Beard & Hair Growth Oil costs ₹9.98 per millilitre at the price Beardo itself charges — more than four times its own face wash at ₹2.25 per millilitre. Two growth claims on that product were struck down on 2 August 2024; two cosmetic claims on the same ad were cleared.
Snapshot
- Brand launched
- 2015, by Ashutosh Valani and Priyank Shah
- Operating company
- Zed Lifestyle Private Limited, incorporated 5 May 2016, Ahmedabad
- Current owner
- Marico Limited (BSE 531642, NSE MARICO) — 100% since 1 July 2020
- Disclosed brand turnover
- ₹214.17 crore in FY2025, or 1.98% of Marico’s consolidated revenue
- Price band in India
- ₹299 to ₹699 on the core range, checked 3 September 2026
- Who makes it
- Seven third-party manufacturers across ten product pages; none owned by the brand
How it started
Beardo began in 2015, when beards were having a moment and nobody in India was selling to them properly. The register tells a slightly different story from the marketing: Zed Lifestyle Private Limited was incorporated on 5 May 2016, a year after the brand says it launched. Both can be true. A brand can trade before its company exists.
Marico noticed early. In March 2017 it announced a 45% stake to be acquired over two years, taking 35.43% in the first tranche. On 1 July 2020 it bought the remaining 55% and the founders left. Marico has never disclosed what it paid for either transaction, and the figures that circulate in the press are reporters’ estimates attributed to nobody.
- Zed Lifestyle Pvt LtdIncorporated 5 May 2016; brand trading from 2015
- Marico takes 35.43%First tranche of an announced 45%, FY2017
- Marico takes 100%1 July 2020; both founders exit
- Marico Limited absorbs the businessDistributed 29 June 2026; Zed awaits NCLT dissolution
That last step is the one most readers have missed. Marico told the exchanges on 27 January 2026 that it would wind Zed Lifestyle up voluntarily and take its entire business undertaking onto its own books. The distribution took effect on 29 June 2026, and dissolution now awaits an order of the National Company Law Tribunal at Ahmedabad.
One genuinely good thing came out of that filing. Because a subsidiary being liquidated has to be quantified, Marico disclosed Beardo’s turnover — ₹214.17 crore, being 1.98% of consolidated revenue, with net worth of ₹18.61 crore. Almost no Indian group publishes brand-level revenue. Marico did, and it is worth the credit.
What they actually make
Nothing, as far as its own website will say. We read ten Beardo product pages on 3 September 2026 and every one of them names a third-party manufacturer. Seven different factories appear across ten products, and Beardo is not among them.
| Product | Marketed by | Manufacturer on the page |
|---|---|---|
| Beard & Hair Growth Oil, 50 ml | Marico Limited, Mumbai | Ameya Plastics, Coimbatore |
| Activated Charcoal Facewash, 200 ml | Marico Limited | HCP Wellness Pvt Ltd, Bhayla |
| Acne Clear Foam Facewash, 100 ml | Marico Limited | Calistta Health Care, Changodar |
| Ultraglow Face Cream SPF-30, 60 g | Marico Limited | R.I. Ayurveda Research Labs, Delhi |
| Godfather Beard Oil, 30 ml | Zed Lifestyle Pvt Ltd | HCP Wellness LLP, Moraiya |
Two of the ten still print Marketed by: Zed Lifestyle while eight say Marico. That is packaging catching up with a corporate change, not a compliance problem. Country of origin is India on all ten, and no manufacturing licence number appears on any of the ten pages — write that as what the pages show, since the physical pack may carry more.
None of this is unusual, and it is not a fault by itself. It matters because the formulation decisions belong to a contract manufacturer whose name the advertising never mentions. Indian footwear has the same split: Campus actually runs its own plants, while Bata India is a separate listed company from the brand name on the shoe. Ask who makes it, not whose logo is on it.
What Beardo costs in India
Beardo’s prices look modest until you divide them by the millilitre. That is the number a grooming brand never prints, and it is where the margin lives.
- Beard & Hair Growth Oil
- 50 ml at ₹499 — ₹9.98 per ml
- Activated Charcoal Facewash
- 200 ml at ₹449 — ₹2.25 per ml
- Beard oil premium
- 4.4× the brand’s own face wash
- Checked on
- 3 September 2026
The Godfather Beard Oil lands in the same place at ₹9.97 per millilitre. For comparison, Beardo’s 100 ml Whisky Smoke eau de parfum works out at ₹6.99 per millilitre on the same day — the beard oil is dearer per drop than the perfume. A 50 ml bottle at ₹499 does not read expensive. ₹499 for the volume a face wash charges ₹112 for does.
A beard oil is a fragrance-forward cosmetic sold at four to eight times the price per millilitre of the wash standing next to it.
The discount is structural rather than seasonal. Nine of the ten products carried a struck-through MRP above the price actually charged on 3 September 2026, from an 8% gap on the Beard Serum to 42% on the perfume, which fell from ₹1,200 to ₹699. Treat the MRP as a reference point rather than a real price. The gap between the printed figure and the till figure is the same test we apply to footwear brands such as Sparx, and it behaves the same way here.
Who Beardo is actually for
Beardo suits a man who wants a pleasant, well-made grooming routine and does not mind paying a fragrance premium for it. The oils smell good, the packaging is decent, and the range is wide enough to cover a whole shelf.
It is a poor fit for anyone buying on the growth promise. Beardo publishes no study, no trial, no laboratory and no report behind its beard-growth claims. The strongest statement on the page is that an ingredient, Redensyl, is “clinically shown to activate dormant hair follicles” — an ingredient-level claim, not a claim about the finished bottle, and the page does not bridge the two.
Its own body copy is more careful than its headline: beard growth, it says, depends on genes, hormones and nutrition, and the oil “will help in providing the external nourishment and proper grooming to your beard”. That sentence and “Thicker Fuller Beard in 4-6 Weeks” are on the same page.
Reputation and controversies
Six Beardo matters sit on the Advertising Standards Council of India’s outcomes record, checked on 3 September 2026. The council is an industry self-regulatory body, not a statutory regulator. Five concern product claims and one concerns an influencer post; the influencer complaint was dismissed. The one that matters is a split decision.
- 2 August 2024 — struck“Boosts growth, reduces beard patches” and “For a thicker, healthier beard”
- 2 August 2024 — cleared“Shinier beard” and “For a smooth & frizz-free beard” held not in contravention
- 3 September 2026 — the page today“Thicker Fuller Beard in 4-6 Weeks”, with nothing published behind it
A partial ruling, honestly reported: the cosmetic claims survived, the growth claims did not.
The ruling was against one website advertisement as it then stood. It is not a standing ban on a form of words, and nobody has ruled on the page as it reads today. What is on the record is that two years after those two lines were held to contravene Chapter I of the code, the same product’s page carries “visible improvement in beard density and reduced patchiness within 4–6 weeks” and publishes no substantiation for it.
Two earlier findings, both on 16 February 2023, went against ranking claims: an “Awarded No.1 male grooming brand of the year 2022” line and an “Awarded as No.1 perfume brand in India” line, each held to breach Chapter I and the council’s guidelines on awards and rankings. Beardo’s home page today describes the brand as “India’s #1 men’s grooming brand” with no ranking body, basis or date given. That present claim has not been ruled on.
The court record runs the other way, and it is a credit. On 14 February 2024 the Delhi High Court decreed Zed Lifestyle’s suit against counterfeiters, granting permanent injunctions against two defendants, imposing costs of ₹3 lakh on each, and directing the marketplace to remove infringing listings within 72 hours of notice. Beardo took fakes to court and won.
Beardo makes no cruelty-free claim and holds no PETA directory listing. Read that as a brand that has not entered the scheme, not as a brand that failed it.
Buying it in India
Buy from beardo.in or a large authorised retailer. The counterfeit problem is real enough that the brand litigated over it, and the fakes concentrate on the beard oils and the perfumes.
Divide before you buy
Take the price, divide by the net quantity on the pack. Beard oil at ₹10 per millilitre is the category norm, not a bargain.
Read the marketer line
Current stock says Marketed by: Marico Limited, Mumbai. Older stock says Zed Lifestyle, Ahmedabad. Both are genuine.
Find the manufacturer’s name
The pack names the factory that actually made it — Ameya Plastics, HCP Wellness, Calistta or R.I. Ayurveda. A pack naming nobody is a warning.
Ignore the struck-through MRP
Nine of ten products sell below it every day. The MRP is a reference figure, not the price anyone pays.
Ask for the report, not the badge
A “clinically tested” line on a listing is a seller’s words. Ask what test, which laboratory, what result. Nothing is published for the growth oil.
Marketplace listings for the same SKU carry harder claims than Beardo’s own site — “Clinically Tested”, “No Harmful Chemicals”, “Natural Actives Only”. Those are the reseller’s words, not the brand’s. We apply the same rule to retail listings in our Metro audit: read the brand’s own page first.
Common questions
Who owns Beardo?
Marico Limited, outright. It took 35.43% in a first tranche in FY2017 as part of an announced 45%, and bought the remaining 55% on 1 July 2020. Since 29 June 2026 the business itself sits inside Marico Limited, with the old company awaiting dissolution.
Does Beardo beard oil actually grow a beard?
Beardo publishes no study, laboratory report or trial result for the claim. On 2 August 2024 the advertising council held that “Boosts growth, reduces beard patches” and “For a thicker, healthier beard” on that product’s website ad contravened its code, while clearing the shine and frizz claims. Judge the promise on what is published, which is nothing.
How much is Beardo beard oil per millilitre?
₹9.98 per millilitre for the 50 ml Beard & Hair Growth Oil at ₹499, and ₹9.97 for the 30 ml Godfather Beard Oil at ₹299, both checked on 3 September 2026. The brand’s 200 ml face wash is ₹2.25 per millilitre.
Is Beardo an Indian brand?
Yes. It was launched in Ahmedabad in 2015 and every product page read for this audit declares India as the country of origin. Its owner, Marico, is a Mumbai company listed on both Indian exchanges.
Does Beardo make its own products?
Not according to its own pages. Ten product pages name seven different third-party manufacturers and no Beardo or Marico factory.
How big is Beardo?
₹214.17 crore of turnover in the year ended 31 March 2025, disclosed by Marico in a filing on 27 January 2026. That is 1.98% of Marico’s consolidated revenue. Any larger figure you see is likely a portfolio run-rate covering six brands, not Beardo alone.
How we research and verify brand audits: our methodology.
References
- ASCI Complaint Outcomes, checked 3 September 2026 — the six Beardo outcomes, including the 2 August 2024 split decision and the two 16 February 2023 rankings findings
- Marico Limited, Regulation 30 intimation, 27 January 2026 — Zed Lifestyle turnover ₹214.17 crore, net worth ₹18.61 crore, 1.98% of consolidated revenue, and the voluntary liquidation
- Marico Limited, media release Q4 FY2017 — the announced 45% stake and the 35.43% first tranche
- Zauba Corp, Zed Lifestyle Private Limited, accessed 3 September 2026 — incorporation on 5 May 2016, CIN, registered office and liquidation status
- Business Upturn, 29 June 2026 — the effective date of the distribution of Zed’s business to Marico
- Beardo, Beard & Hair Growth Oil product page, read 3 September 2026 — the current claims, price, net quantity and manufacturer line
- Beardo, all products, read 3 September 2026 — the prices, MRPs and net quantities behind every per-millilitre figure here
- Zed Lifestyle Pvt Ltd v. Hardik Mukeshbhai Pansheriya & Ors, Delhi High Court, 14 February 2024 — the decree, the permanent injunctions and the ₹3 lakh costs
- YourStory, 1 July 2020 — the completion of Marico’s buyout and the founders’ exit
Beardo makes pleasant products and has a parent that discloses more than most. The ₹214.17 crore turnover figure, published because a liquidation forced it, is more brand-level detail than most Indian groups ever give. The counterfeit litigation is real work, properly won, and the packaging tells you who actually made the bottle.
The growth promise is the problem. Two of those claims were struck down on 2 August 2024 and the product page still says “Thicker Fuller Beard in 4-6 Weeks” with no study, laboratory or report published behind it. At ₹9.98 a millilitre — four times the brand’s own face wash — you are paying a fragrance price for a claim nobody has substantiated.
Buy it because it smells good and you like the routine; if you are buying it to grow a beard, ₹499 buys you 50 ml of nicely scented oil and a promise the record has already been sceptical about once.
