Kaya, the hair care and skin care services business of Marico has just undergone a face-lift. The change has been initiated at several levels. At the most visible level, Kaya will now have a new logo with the tagline 'love what you see'. The new identity, which has been crafted after a period of nine years - the first since the brand was born - will span across all marketing efforts. In the second phase, the company will revamp the product packaging and invest in a new retail design.

The makeover is driven by Kaya's attempt to change consumer perceptions. "Most people classify Kaya as a place to visit only when there is something wrong with their skin. We want to change that and showcase that even people with normal skin can visit for skin maintenance," asserts Suvodeep Das, head (marketing), Kaya Skin Clinic. For this, in the last 18 months, the brand has introduced several enhancement solutions which are targeted at people who may not be dealing with a particular skin problem. The new retail environment, which will roll out in phases will also communicate this new change. "We want the environment to look less like a clinic and make it more interactive," says Das.

While services, which rake in 80 per cent of sales, will continue to be the focus area, the company will not ignore product sales. The new retail design will merchandise products creatively to drive sales of products used during services. The company has also introduced seven products from the DermaRx portfolio, which have done fairly well in India. DermaRx (a Singapore based specialised skincare firm which the company acquired in 2010) products will also be rolled out in the Middle East. Analysts claim DermaRx has helped improve the profitability of Kaya as the profit margins are much higher.