To be, or not to be was no longer a question for husband-wife duo Atul and Deeksha Rajani and Angela Toppo, it was rather a point to prove, when they entered India’s $42.97 Bn(around INR 37,000 Cr) thriving market for nutritional and dietary supplements.

Robust demand from youths, who seemed to have far shot past 371.4 Mn in count by 2021, rising disposable incomes in a $2.4 Tn consumer market, which is growing to be the world’s second largestat $4.3 Tn by 2030, and growing awareness in health and wellness across demographic divide have fuelled an exponential surge in nutritional supplements.

They are everywhere – be it a pharmacy or a supermarket or an ecommerce marketplace – in snazzy packaging and attractive promises across the world, driving a $520 Bn market at 8-9% a year.

The founders of Be Life chose to look at life at large when it joined the fray five months back.

“We built the brand true to what we had desired – clinically sound, emotionally intelligent, and committed to longevity. Our products support a deeper wellness journey, better sleep, stronger hair, healthier skin, and more energy – not just for today, but for the long run,” Deeksha said.

The founders positioned Be Life – often called Be. – as a science-backed nutraceutical brand that offers clean, high-quality supplements designed for the modern-day lifestyle. They claimed that the products are formulated by pharmacists and health experts, and targets specific aspects like sleep, energy, beauty, and vitality.

“What sets Be apart is its mix of quality and local manufacturing that ensures purity, safety, and effectiveness,” she said. The product portfolio includes Be. Alpha, Be. ON DND, Be. Sexy, and Be. Glossy. “All these are free from GMOs, preservatives, glutens, artificial sweeteners, or gelatins.”

Similar claims are not unheard of in a market where more than 30 nutraceutical startups came up every year through the last 10 years, pushing the industry on an 8.1% annual growth track to reach $68.43 Bn (around INR 58,700 Cr) by 2030.

“A core flaw in the nutraceutical space is that most products are either too basic, built around one trending ingredient, or simply ineffective. For example, sleep supplements often use melatonin as a cure-all, when in reality, melatonin alone doesn’t address the complexity of sleep. However, our sleep product was designed using a holistic, 360° formulation approach. It includes ingredients to calm the body, induce sleep, support deep sleep cycles, and crucially, enable recovery. Users wake up refreshed, not groggy,” Atul explained.

In less than six months, the bootstrapped startup has achieved an average order value (AOV) of INR 3,800 and boasts a returning customer rate of approximately 28%. It claims a month-on-month growth rate exceeding 25%.

The backstory of Be Life is a blend of a personal journey and a scientific mind.

A green technologist and pharmaceutical veteran, Atul brought in over 25 years of experience in developing sustainable drug synthesis methods at Dalas Biotech, which is India’s largest and the world’s third-largest antibiotic manufacturer.

The journey dates back to 2015 when the idea of Be. was born, but the turning point came when the Rajanis were plagued by some personal reasons. After years of pushing his body through intense fitness regimens and managing chronic stress with pharmaceuticals, Atul ended up in a hospital. “This was a wake-up call for me, and I vowed to never rely on synthetic solutions again and began crafting functional, natural formulations to support long-term health and recovery,” he said.

Around the same time, Deeksha was navigating her own health battle. After a challenging journey to conceive a baby, a tough pregnancy, and a deeply depleting postpartum period, she found herself hormonally imbalanced and nutritionally drained, despite prioritising wellness above all. “Solving something as basic as hairfall meant juggling multiple brands, products with little synergy, and zero education about long-term outcomes,” she said.

For Atul, who had been pursuing his interest in nutraceuticals by reading up more than 2,000 clinical papers, developing formulations, and exploring how natural compounds could bring in physiological results, Deeksha’s experience in brand strategy and understanding of consumer behaviour came handy.

“Our mission is to help people reach their maximum genetic potential through evidence-based formulations and real-world experience, shared with integrity,” Deeksha said.

Be Life was built around the expectations of the top 1% of the consumer class – not just in terms of economic status, but also in terms of awareness. The duo devoted most of their time to research until they registered the company in July 2024 and Angela joined them as a cofounder.

After 18 months, Be. came to life as a direct-to-consumer (D2C) brand in January this year.

When Be. entered the nutraceuticals space, more than 400 brands were racing for a slice of the market pie.

The brand aimed for the Tier I consumers at the time of launch. Within 40-50 days, however, orders began pouring in from tier II cities. “People from smaller towns weren’t just purchasing, they were deeply engaging, investing in the products, and sharing heartfelt testimonials,” Deeksha said.

The trio realised that the demand for high-quality health solutions wasn’t limited to geographies or incomes since people were not looking for discounts, instead, they wanted products that delivered real value.

Be. shares the niche space in nutraceuticals with competitors like MuscleBlaze, Nutrabay, OZiva, Auric, and Setu Nutrition. The segment sees spiralling demand from an upwardly mobile, 560 Mn-strong middle class, earning between INR 6 Lakh and INR 36 Lakh a year. “We have designed our products for this segment where wellness is neither overlooked, nor unaffordable,” Atul said.

Healthkart and Kapiva dominate the $1.79 Bn market for sports nutrition products, which is on course to hit $3.31 Bn by 2033, as more and more Indians change their dietary habits to stay fit.

According to Deeksha, most supplement brands focus only on single ingredients, instead of effective combinations. Even the quantum of those ingredients is often insufficient. “For post-partum hairfall, I had to supplement biotin and other vitamins through three to four different brands and products. There was no one-stop solution,” she recounted. “That was because such a solution didn’t exist earlier, the per-dose quantity was too low to show results for advanced conditions, and the ingredient quality was often subpar.”

With six SKUs, the brand’s core differentiator lies in its science-backed, outcome-oriented formulations that address real, everyday concerns with precision and efficacy. “We don’t create generic supplements. We build evidence-led solutions rooted in functional medicine, ingredient bioavailability, and clean-label integrity,” Deeksha claimed.

These SKUs are formulated with exact combinations of ingredients, and offered at the specific, clinically backed quantum for each ingredient, he said. “No other brand in India provides 500 mg of glutathione per serving along with 8,330 mg of Japanese marine peptides and approximately 7.9 grams of protein per serving. This isn’t just a vanity-driven consume-for-better-skin product.”

Be. Sexy, according to him, is specifically designed to deliver visible results not only for skin health, but also to support joint and cartilage restoration and overall wellness.

Its bestselling products include Be. Alpha, a testosterone booster for men, Be. Sexy, Japanese marine collagen with glutathione for both men and women, and Be. ON DND, a sleep support supplement formulated with melatonin, magnesium, ashwagandha, and chamomile. So far, the brand has acquired a little over 1,900 users through its D2C channel.

“The industry is replete with misinformation, miseducation, and misnomers,” Angela said. Be Life drew up the blueprint for business on four pillars that they call the foundational philosophy.

The first pillar is science. “While international figures like Andrew Huberman and Joe Rogan have made science more accessible to global audiences, India lacks a similar voice. Be aims to fill this gap by simplifying complex scientific ideas and making them easy to understand. Whether it’s through product packaging, labels, social media posts, our brand ensures that science is clear, relatable, and never overwhelming,” she explained.

The commitment to deliver real results without the fluff makes the second pillar. Be claims that its products are designed to build real, lasting habits using transparent and purposeful formulations. She gave the example of Be.  Alpha, a plant-based testosterone booster and a multi-ingredient formulation.

“It doesn’t cause a habit and supports natural testosterone production. It contains Siberian ginseng, gokshura, ashwagandha, and genugreek in a four-tablet daily dose, formulated specifically for men to support energy, stamina, stress resilience, natural hormone balance, and mental clarity.”

Third, instead of relying on complicated medical jargon, Be communicates in a tone that’s more friendly and fathomable. “Whether it’s social media reels, carousel posts, or YouTube videos – we ensure that messaging makes people feel included, empowered, and informed. Here, science isn’t a flex – it’s a tool to help.”

The fourth pillar is built on a health-conscious consumer mindset that questions conventional pharmaceuticals, and spots empty wellness promises.

Unlike Wellbeing Nutrition, Power Gummies and HealthKart, Be doesn’t indulge in aggressive marketing. “We’re receiving incredible feedback within barely five months of existence,” Deeksha said. Users, including individuals with chronic insomnia or past reliance on prescription medication, have reported transformative results with Be. On DND.

Be. On DND is the highest grosser in the Be Life bouquet, along with Be. Alpha and Be. Sexy.

The brand follows a 50-50 approach, where the products are deeply rooted to clinical research and the communication is simple and engaging. The company claims to have achieved a 27.65% customer retention rate, despite minimal influencer marketing or large-scale distribution. In the D2C space, anything between 30% and 40% is considered a good retention rate. For a six-month-old brand, anything hovering on 30% is commendable.

At least 71% Indian consumers take nutraceuticals on a regular basis, a LocalCircles study showed. Vitamins, minerals, fibres, omega-3 fatty acids and herbs have been found to be the highest grossers.

Be. and its peer startups in the nutraceuticals space are riding on this wave. Many of them such as Wellbeing Nutrition, OZiva, and Kapiva have even surpassed the INR 100 Cr mark in revenue. Be. claims to have sold over 3,000 products through its website in six months and is now aiming at a revenue of INR 5–6 Cr in FY26 and INR 25 Cr by the end of the next fiscal.

Upbeat on an impressive retention rate, the brand aims to launch 15 products in one year to make deeper inroads into the market. “These launches will span core wellness needs and emerging lifestyle concerns, keeping longevity, bio-optimisation, and efficacy at the centre,” Atul said.

Its products feature in the premium price range, which invites higher scrutiny. “Trust isn’t something you can demand – it has to be earned. We are completely transparent and disclose every ingredient and explain every function and keep on listening to the consumer. It helps customers understand what goes into a formulation and what to choose,” Atul said.

It’s still early for the bootstrapped D2C wellness brand to carve out a meaningful presence in this cluttered and largely fragmented market, but the way the founders have positioned Be Life, it has the leverage of growing awareness among consumers.

The tailwinds are strong. But the headwinds too are gathering strength with more and more players making similar claims of science-backed, clean-label, or performance-driven credentials in the booming market for nutraceuticals.

[Edited by Kumar Chatterjee]

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