Dearth of skilled personnel, low-paying jobs key challenges for India’s beauty & wellness industry: Experts

MANGALURU: Even as the beauty and wellness industry is seeing an explosive growth, there is a huge need for skilled manpower in the industry to elevate its growth trajectory to the next level, opined experts gathered at an ASSOCHAM International Conference-cum-awards on beauty and wellness.
“There is a need to infuse a feel-good factor for youth in terms of choosing a career as a wellness expert, beautician, hairdresser and others to attract skilled manpower in this industry,” said Blossom Kochhar, chairperson, Blossom Kochhar group of companies an industry veteran with over 35 years of experience.
Sharing his views on the subject, Samir Srivastav, chief executive officer, Jean-Claude Biguine Salon and Spa said that while the beauty and wellness industry figures among fastest-growing sectors and remains recession-proof, the dignity of labour and dearth of skilled people are some of the biggest challenges being faced, more so owing the stigma attached to the profession.
“There is an urgent need for all the stakeholders be it the industry experts, professionals, regulatory authorities and others to work in tandem and bring vibrancy into the beauty and wellness sector,” said Srivastav.
Sharing his concerns, Sandeep Ahuja, director, VLCC Health Care Limited said that while the beauty and wellness industry in India is booming, the skilled professionals like beauticians and wellness experts need to be paid well to attract more people to develop a career in the industry.
“The expectations of customer have risen and when the demand for quality increases, we must build an ecosystem which is conducive to such standards,” said Ahuja. “We want trained manpower to join us but are we paying them enough to feel part of an ecosystem that is appreciative?”
Sandeep Marwah, chancellor, AAFT University of Media and Arts said that the it is the glamour and ardour which has made beauty and wellness industry as one of the most sought-after offbeat career choices for youth.
MANGALURU: Meenakshi Sharma, assistant secretary general, ASSOCHAM said, “More and more Indians are becoming aware of global trends, travelling, increasing spend on personal care and grooming, looking for quality customised products and in a sense asking for the industry to adhere to and create new benchmarks in terms of quality, packaging, branding etc.”
“The key question here is how ready is the industry to rise to these expectations? Is there enough R&D, capacity, skills to grow and what kind of support does the industry require to be able to take on global names and brands,” she stated.
The list of award recipients included established and prominent brands like - Lakmé Academy, Dabur Research Foundation, VLCC Health Care Ltd. and others.