Arshia Kaur Vijan Is Reimagining Beauty Through Technology At Tint Cosmetics

At the Digital Women Awards 2025,Arshia Kaur Vijan, founder of Tint Cosmetics, was recognised in the E-commerce category for building a beauty brand that thoughtfully bridges skincare and makeup while prioritising inclusivity across all Indian skin tones and skin types. Her brand is built on technology and formulation science to serve diverse Indian consumers.

While accepting the award on stage, Arshia acknowledged the women who supported her journey, saying, “I owe this to all the inspiring women around me who helped me make space in a room that probably wasn’t built for us, and I truly appreciate this.”

Arshia Kaur Vijan: Digital Women Awards 2025

STP: What is the vision behind Tint Cosmetics?

Arshia: At Tint, we’re not just launching what’s trending - we’re building what’s ours. We're removing the decade-long guesswork from beauty by merging skincare and makeup to serve the diverse skin tones and skin types in India.

With in-house manufacturing and R&D, every formula is born in our own lab - giving us complete creative control and the widest range of lip glosses in India.

Then comes Tint Labs - our tech-powered offline experience - India’s First Makeup Customisation platform, where customers scan their face to receive personalised colour and skin reports and create their perfect shade on the spot.

We’re here to revolutionise Indian beauty - with tech that understands you, formulas that heal you, and products that feel like they were made for no one else but you.

STP: What Is Your Business Model?

Arshia: Tint operates on a direct-to-consumer model, powered by in-house R&D and manufacturing. By owning our formulas and production, we eliminate third-party dependencies - ensuring better margins, faster innovation, and complete creative control.

Our core revenue comes from makeup and skincare sales through our website, marketplaces, and offline pop-ups, supported by repeat customers and high AOV.

Beyond products, we’re creating a new revenue vertical through Tint Labs - our experiential tech stores where customers pay for custom formulations built on the spot.

Our model is simple - build everything in-house, innovate faster, personalise deeper, and own every step from lab to lips.

STP: What Kind Of Funding Did You Start With?

Arshia: Tint started with a humble investment of just ₹25,000, and within our first year, we scaled to ₹25 lakhs in revenue, all while being completely bootstrapped.

To date, we’ve remained independent, reinvesting profits and a total of ₹50 lakhs back into the business to fuel R&D, innovation, and growth.

STP: In What Ways Do Technology And Digital Tools Contribute To The Growth, Efficiency, And Overall Success Of Your Business?

Arshia: At Tint, technology is not just a support tool - it is the backbone of our innovation, growth, and efficiency.

In product development, our in-house digital R&D tools enable us to create skincare-infused makeup with precision and consistency. Data-driven formulation reduces waste, accelerates prototyping, and ensures every product performs as intended.

Our Tint Labs are a direct example of technology transforming the customer experience. Using our AI-powered face analysis engine and Magic Mirror, customers receive a personalised skin and colour report.

Coupled with soon-to-be-launched robotic arm technology, we create custom shades of lip gloss, foundation, and tints on the spot - a real-time, hyper-personalised experience that drives trust, loyalty, and repeat purchase.

Digital tools also optimise operations: online and offline data feeds into inventory management, demand forecasting, and marketing strategies. Automation reduces errors and frees our team to focus on creative innovation and growth.

Looking ahead, technology allows us to scale personalised beauty across India, maintaining quality while expanding reach. 

STP: What Were Some Key Challenges You Faced While Building Your Business?

Arshia: As a woman founder, one of my biggest challenges has been being taken seriously. Vendors, suppliers, and even peers sometimes underestimated me, assuming I wouldn’t care or couldn’t lead, forcing me to constantly assert authority and earn respect.

Another challenge is leading consistently while navigating women’s hormonal cycles - an often-overlooked reality.

Mental and physical fluctuations impact focus and energy, yet the expectation is to perform at the same level as anyone else. Learning to manage this, balance energy, and lead authentically has been critical.

These challenges taught me resilience, self-awareness, and the importance of creating systems that support both myself and my team, proving that authenticity and persistence can break barriers.

But we're breaking barriers on a daily basis and now have even more empathy to lead huge teams!

STP: What Is The Future Opportunity For Your Business? 

Arshia: India’s beauty market is projected to cross $30 billion by 2027, with skincare-makeup hybrids and personalisation leading global growth. That’s exactly where Tint sits - at the intersection of tech, R&D, and beauty.

We’re building a future where Indian consumers can finally experience shade accuracy, ingredient transparency, and customisation on demand. Soon to diversify our portfolio into base makeup with a range of over 100 shades.

With Tint Labs, we plan to open 10+ experiential stores across metros by 2027, each powered by our proprietary face-scan engine and robotic formulation tech.

On the product side, we’re expanding our active-infused makeup line by 3x over the next two years - capturing India’s growing demand for skincare-first formulations.

Our goal: make #FindYourTint a nationwide reality, scaling personalised beauty to millions of Indian users, while owning the full value chain from lab to lips.

STP: As An Entrepreneur, What's The One Motto You Live By? 

Arshia: Start before you feel ready, before the “right” time arrives - because it never will. Perfection kills creativity. Do things messily, confused, scared and imperfectly. Take the leap, make mistakes, learn fast, and keep moving.