Mamaearth, SUGAR, Plum, Pilgrim — India's D2C beauty boom runs on names and packaging. Lock both before the contract manufacturer's other client does.
A D2C beauty brand is two assets stacked together: the name customers search and the packaging they recognise on a shelf or a thumbnail. Both are protectable from day one, and a fast-moving category like cosmetics punishes founders who protect neither.
Under the Trade Marks Act, 1999, a cosmetics brand sits primarily in Class 3 (cosmetics, skincare, make-up), often Class 5 (medicated and therapeutic preparations), and Class 35 (online retail). The government fee is ₹4,500 per class for individuals, DPIIT startups and MSMEs, or ₹9,000 otherwise. Most NCR beauty founders file from Delhi, Gurgaon or Noida — all under the Trade Marks Registry's Delhi office. Use the trademark class finder to map your range and the cost calculator to price the multi-class filing.
Three filings cover most of the IP risk on day one. Each is a standalone service and each links to a deeper walkthrough.
The brands that scale cleanly hold four protections, not one:
Run a clean pre-filing search first; a crowded class like cosmetics throws Section 11 conflicts constantly.
Skincare and make-up sit in Class 3. A serum or supplement making a therapeutic claim may need Class 5. Soaps and cleansers can straddle 3 and 5. A brand selling beauty tools (rollers, devices) adds Class 21 or 8. The safe default for an online beauty brand is Class 3 + Class 35, expanding as the range grows.
If you export — and Indian beauty brands increasingly do — the Madrid Protocol lets one Indian filing reach 130+ countries. The deeper class logic for consumer brands is in IP for FMCG brands and fashion and apparel brands.
Most D2C beauty revenue runs through Amazon, Nykaa, Flipkart and the brand's own store. A registered mark unlocks Amazon Brand Registry and makes counterfeit takedowns far faster. The seller-side playbook is in trademark for ecommerce sellers.
India's first-to-file rule means a contract manufacturer's other client, or a marketplace copycat, can register your name while you are still validating product-market fit. The filing that costs ₹4,500 today is cheaper than the rebrand a cease-and-desist forces later.
Launching a beauty or cosmetics brand this quarter? File the name and the packaging before the first marketplace listing goes live.
WhatsApp our team →Cosmetics, skincare and make-up sit in Class 3. Products with a medicated or therapeutic claim may also need Class 5, and online retail of the brand sits in Class 35. Most D2C beauty brands file Class 3 plus Class 35 at minimum.
Yes. A distinctive bottle, jar or carton can be protected as a registered design under the Designs Act, 2000, and a distinctive label can be a device trademark. Both work alongside the wordmark.
By default the creator can own copyright unless it is assigned in writing to your company. Always take a written copyright assignment from agencies and freelancers so the brand owns its own packaging and creative.
₹4,500 per class in government fees for individuals, DPIIT startups and MSMEs, or ₹9,000 per class otherwise, plus professional fees. A typical Class 3 plus Class 35 filing is two class fees. See the Delhi D2C filing guide and the complete 2026 Delhi guide.