Ananya Birla’s Contraband luxury fragrances turn a new leaf with a brick-and-mortar tie-up with Parcos

Contraband, the luxury fragrance label of singer-turned-entrepreneur Ananya Birla, will become the first homegrown luxury fragrance brand to hit the shelves of the brick-and-mortar stores of Parcos, India’s leading luxury beauty retailer, come August-end. The partnership is expected to make Contrabrand’s world-class, product-first luxury accessible to discerning Indian consumers.

According to Contraband, Parcos was a natural choice for Contraband’s next phase of growth. Contraband joins homegrown luxury brands that have been tapping into different retail channels. Earlier this month, Tata CLiQ Luxury said it would launch an exclusive digital boutique for Sabyasachi Fine Jewellery, marking Sabyasachi’s first foray into the online space in India. The partnership will make the largest selection of Sabyasachi’s fine jewellery collections available on the platform.

Ananya Birla, who is a scion of the hallowed Birla family, forayed into India’s expanding beauty and personal care (BPC) market—which is expected to reach $34 billion by 2028—in February. “Launching two beauty brands within weeks of each other was intense, but we pulled it off... We’re just getting started,” Birla told Fortune India earlier. Currently, Birla is also on the board of the group’s apex strategic body—Aditya Birla Management Corp.

Not known to be a typical heiress, Birla has been chasing her passions, from music to empowering women, until it converged with the mainstay of her family—doing business. Svatantra Microfin is a small-ticket loan provider to women in rural India that Ananya founded when she was 17. It has grown to become the second-largest NBFC-MFI with ₹13,885 crore in assets under management (AUM), 2,024 branches, and a workforce of over 22,000. Svatantra serves four million customers across 19 states.

Even Contraband is reflective of her unconventional, passionate persona. “Contraband is your unapologetic statement—crafted for those who dare to follow their hearts in a world that tells them not to,” Birla said in a statement. Currently, its range is available on the website, with plans to expand both the portfolio and distribution channels in the months ahead.