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D2C ayurvedic beauty and personal care brand The Ayurveda Co (T.A.C) has shut down, more than a year after it ceased operations, cofounder Param Bhargava said in a LinkedIn post. Bhargava announced the closure of both T.A.C and its sister brand Khadi Essentials, adding that the startups stopped operations in July 2025. Their assets have since been liquidated, and the entities are now undergoing a formal winding-up process. “Taking the hardest pill for now and shutting down my second love, The Ayurveda Co and Khadi Essentials,” Bhargava wrote. He attributed the failure to the startup expanding faster than its systems and business could support. “We expanded too fast, too wide, and (hired) way too many senior folks too early, before the system was ready,” Bhargava said, adding that the startup’s ambitions ran ahead of what the business could sustainably support. The cofounder said the team tried to keep the business afloat by mortgaging parental property, while the cofounders did not withdraw salaries for more than a year. He added that the pressure of trying to turn around the business led to physical and mental breakdowns. Bhargava took responsibility for the failure, saying there were several decisions he would make differently today. Founded in 2021 by Bhargava and Shreedha Singh, T.A.C sold ayurvedic products across skincare, haircare, natural makeup, wellness, and supplements. The founders had earlier launched Khadi Essentials in 2019. The startup sold its products through its website, ecommerce marketplaces, exclusive outlets, and multibrand stores. As per Bhargava, the startup owned 20 retail stores and had more than 800 beauty advisor counters and a network of 110 operational distributors. He said the brand scaled to ₹250 Cr in net revenue and had 20 Lakh consumers. T.A.C. raised a total of $15 Mn in funding to date from Sixth Sense Ventures, Wipro Consumer Care Venture, and a host of angel investors, including actor Kajal Aggarwal. The startup last raised ₹100 Cr in its Series A funding round in 2023. T.A.C's FY24 revenue grew 67% YoY to ₹59.6 Cr, while loss tripled to ₹68 Cr on the back of expenses that nearly doubled to ₹109.5 Cr. With the closure, T.A.C has joined a growing list of Indian startups that have shut down operations in 2026. Earlier this week, Savtacart shut shop after failed funding and acquisition discussions. Last month, social networking platform Medial announced its closure after failing to raise fresh funding amid a cash crunch. Koo cofounder Mayank Bidawatka also shut down his AI-powered photo-sharing startup PicSee after it failed to achieve the scale required to sustain operations. The list also includes quick commerce startup Klydo and online matchmaking platform Juleo.
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