Kapiva’s Formula: How Clinical Validation Helped Build A Modern Ayurveda Giant

by · Inc42

SUMMARY

  • Ameve Sharma spotted a dearth of modern, science-backed ayurvedic brands, and went on to build Kapiva to fill this gap
  • Kapiva generates about 35% of its revenue from its own website, 40% from online marketplaces, and the remaining 25% from offline channels
  • Kapiva did business of INR 342 Cr in FY25 and aims at a revenue of INR 600 Cr this fiscal, with losses narrowing to single digits.
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A large section of people in China trusts traditional medicines. Popularised as a mainstream healthcare category, these drugs have built a $50 Bn opportunity in the country’s $80 Bn pharma market. But, the situation is starkly different in India, where age-old ayurveda controls merely a fourth of a $40 Bn market for pharma products, despite its deep cultural roots. 

Various reasons, spanning from an aging populace with a median age of 40.6 years to its innate preference for natural alternatives, backed this surge in Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM). But, what stood out most strikingly was a lack of rigorous, evidence-based scientific research in India. Ameve Sharma spotted a dearth of modern, science-backed ayurvedic brands that could be built on this gap.

He launched Kapiva as a direct-to-consumer (D2C) ayurvedic brand in 2016 and rolled out the first batch of products a year later. Nine years on, the startup offers SKUs across wellness, diabetes care, heart health, and gym nutrition. The company did business of INR 342 Cr in FY25 and aims at a revenue of INR 600 Cr this fiscal, with losses narrowing to single digits.

Such financials helped Kapiva garner nearly $120 Mn so far from investors like Fireside Ventures, 3one4 Capital, 360 One Asset, and Vertex Ventures, shows Inc42 Data Labs. 

Despite the early growth momentum, the ayurvedic D2C brand is likely to find a gamut of giants in fray and face headwinds from a younger population, averagely aged 35 years and used to lightning-fast results. Modern medicines offer quick relief from illnesses, whereas ayurveda is typically believed to be demanding more time, patience, and consistency. Heavy metals, often traced in ayurvedic drugs exceeding the safe limit, also put off the younger Indian consumers. 

Can Sharma steer his startup through these challenges? Inc42 sought to look at how Kapiva diagnosed the ailment, read the pulse of the market, and rewrote its prescription. 

A Known Terrain, But A Road Less Travelled 

For Ameve Sharma, the brain behind Kapiva, it wasn’t hard to spot opportunities in ayurveda because of the legacy of Baidyanath, one of India’s oldest and most renowned brands in the traditional medicines space, he carried in his genes. “I always knew that ayurveda would be pivotal in my career, no matter what I do,” shared the management graduate from France in a candid conversation at his Bengaluru office. 

The turning point came when Sharma joined McKinsey as a consultant after spending five years in the family business. He was enthused to see how young startups scaled rapidly, how capital flowed through venture funding, and how structured processes unlocked exponential growth. His global exposure and interactions with CXOs of hyper-scaled companies abroad sharpened his understanding of scale. This is when he connected with Shrey Badhani, then an associate with Bain & Company with exposure to private equity and startups. 

What drove Sharma and Badhani closer was a strong conviction that a new-age ayurvedic brand, rooted in science and modern branding, had massive untapped potential. 

Sharma, however, realised that bringing startup-style agility and experimentation within a century-old family business wasn’t easy. “When you’re part of a family business, there are multiple stakeholders involved, and it’s not always flexible enough to execute bold ideas,” he said.

Kapiva was born as a bootstrapped startup out of the shared belief of Sharma and Badhani and later on partners from Fireside Ventures chipped in as its first institutional investors.

Kapiva isn’t alone in the field. Although the Indian startup ecosystem has seen a surge in ayurveda startups, most are concentrated in beauty and personal care, which leaves Sharma’s products at a vantage spot.

Course Correction Leads To D2C Pivot

Sharma and Badhani invested their personal savings to start with contract manufacturing of popular ayurvedic wellness products. The initial portfolio comprised supplements for diabetes and heart ailments. 

Sluggish business in the first two years, however, didn’t deter the founders from sourcing high-quality raw materials and achieving standardisation. “These two areas often become a bottleneck for traditional ayurveda to prosper,” Sharma said.

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