Shop My Shelf: The CosMix Couple

Tell us about the CosMix story!

Vibha: It initially started from my own experience with PCOS, where I struggled with finding natural sustainable solutions. My mother, being a Homeopath, recommended a more holistic approach to my wellness journey. That sparked my interest in understanding the herbs, and Herbalism as a whole, which I formally studied before launching CosMix.

Soorya: For me it started with helping Vibha in her personal journey and as a partner I was very encouraged by the huge change the holistic approach brought about in her wellbeing. Gradually and rather organically, it led to the creation of the brand. My strong agricultural background helped CosMix further in sourcing the best ingredients for Vibha’s formulation.

CosMix has had some great milestones. Founded in a pandemic. Founders married in the pandemic. Tell us about the challenges and the learnings!

Vibha: We just wanted to put a good quality product out there. No fluff. Just an honest product that will work and speak for itself. So we did not spend much on marketing or ads in the beginning. The pandemic happened 3-4 months after our launch, but despite the odds we worked on the wellbeing aspect to reach out to customers, who were looking for that change during the COVID times.

Soorya: I hadn't actively started working full time for CosMix back then as I was still in Service. The shift happened gradually with the “CosMix” wedding, the initial growth of the brand, and the need for ethical sourcing. With my agriculture background we hope to build a strong backbone of the supply chain for organic, home grown, high standard, superfoods and herbs farmed with ethical philosophies, that go into our formulations that benefit the farming community as well. 

Vibha has spent her early years in Australia while Soorya spent his in India. Vibha came from a family run business whilst Surya comes from the Navy. How are these varied experiences informing your vision and ethos at the company? 

Vibha: Actually, our different backgrounds really compliments our working relationship. Since I am the so-called dreamer, I am able to envision something that doesn't exist and bring it to life. While Soorya is more of a realist, which is equally important because a dreamer cannot thrive without a realist. Additionally, also what I have learned from Soorya is discipline and structure. This has helped me transit from a home set up and slow growth and catapulted us into a phenomenal growth for a bootstrapped company like ours.

Soorya: Being groomed by the Indian Navy does play a big role in my thought process and discipline. It also helped that I was a Logistics officer during my time at service. From implementing SOPs, to creating a structure and analyzing our performance and customer demand, this has really cemented CosMix as not just a hobby business but a brand that is gearing towards a larger growth. I admire Vibha’s risk taking personality, our penchant to take the initiative and her creative out of the box thinking, which encourages innovation and keeps the brand fresh all the time! 

From Farm to Bottle, how long does this process take? What global best practices do you follow? Give us a short tour of your process in words.

We let the ops man handle this question: Some herbs take 3 - 6 months to mature, some even upto 2 - 5 years to mature. Our farmers actually invest 5 years, in the hope that someone buys the produce by the 5th year. It does take a long time and we want to encourage them and support their growth as well. It is the positive associations with the farming community that has really been of utmost use. Our team also travels very frequently in search of new farms to contribute to the supply chain created. We have our own manufacturing facility where all our products are made including packaging and labeling. It gives our customers assurance on receiving the best quality that can be.

The wellness industry has soared since the pandemic. How has this boom affected CosMix? What kind of consumer demands have you met?

Vibha: The pandemic definitely accelerated our growth. But we have always emphasized to our customers that our products are not an overnight change. It is a commitment to a change in the lifestyle where these products will simply further enhance your goals. And because the emphasis on holistic processes just like how it’s done at KOSA with skincare, it was important, we didn’t create huge marketing campaigns, creating a new trendy agenda for our customers. When you come to CosMix, your body will transform over a period of time. We are always looking out for new concerns of our customers that we can fulfill, leading to regular new launches in our product repertoire.

What methods have been deployed to narrow down on the selection of products? How do you use the customer feedback - both positive and negative? Any specific gaps you wish to fill through herbalism?

Vibha: We talk to our customers everyday, we want to listen to them and understand their requirements and challenges. We regularly conduct google surveys and IG polls.

What are some wellness practices you follow individually and as a couple? Given that you run the business together.

Vibha: I have practiced Yoga on a daily basis for the past 3 years, I am obsessed with Yoga.

Soorya: I go to the gym on a daily basis. We start our day with taking our dogs Itsy & Bitsy for a walk. The gym is where I get to center myself before the day begins.

Any favourite recipes on the go?

Vibha: I start my day with a smoothie, this is something I have learnt from my mentor Upasana who is a health coach and plant based nutritionist. Since I follow a plant based diet, my smoothie is full of hemp hearts, flax seeds, frozen bananas, leafy greens & any fruit which is a good source of Vitamin C and A. For lunch we have a four portion meal with raw veggies, cooked veggies, protein & grains.

Superfoods are a necessity, but what brings Matcha Kaju Katli to your wedding?

Soorya: When we found such a great source for Matcha we had to bring matcha to the menu! Plus we had a very close and intimate COVID wedding so we wanted to bring a little bit of ourselves to the menu and get innovatie. Vibha loves Matcha, so it was a no-brainer to bring Matcha to the wedding and the video of Match kaju katli just went viral !

We hear you guys love to travel, are you a Mountain or Beach couple? 

Beach!

Share 5 things with us from your bucket list.

1. Learn Muay Thai in Thailand
2. Snorkel more!
3. Swim with the dolphins!
4. Take CosMix global.
5. Create a big impact with our Nutrition for All programme.

Onward and upward, where do you see CosMix a year from now?

Soorya: To be able to provide the best solution for all the wellness requirements, great herbs, product development & quality. 

Vibha: Good quality wellness products for every need.