Bombay Shaving Company faces criticism over excessive whatsapp messages

Bombay Shaving Company CEO Shantanu Deshpande has apologised after an entrepreneur accused the grooming brand of sending excessive promotional messages on WhatsApp.

The issue surfaced when Bengaluru-based entrepreneur Debajyoti Jena shared a LinkedIn post claiming he had blocked three official Bombay Shaving Company WhatsApp accounts due to frequent marketing messages, according to various media reports.

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Jena alleged that the brand sent promotional messages three times a day from each account, resulting in nearly nine notifications daily.

He questioned whether the repeated outreach was part of a customer acquisition strategy and urged the company to stop what he called the "bombardment" of messages.

CEO apologises

Deshpande responded to the post and acknowledged the issue.

"Should not have happened honestly. Apologies for this. We're trying to balance meaningful outreach without annoying customers. Will do better," he wrote.

His response drew attention online, with users discussing the growing volume of promotional messages from brands.

Growing concerns

The incident triggered a wider debate around WhatsApp marketing and customer communication practices.

Several users shared similar experiences and raised concerns about excessive brand outreach through direct messaging channels.

Trust versus engagement

Founded in 2015, Bombay Shaving Company has become one of India's leading D2C grooming brands.

The episode highlights the challenge brands face in balancing customer engagement with consumer trust. As companies increase direct marketing efforts, customers are becoming more sensitive to message frequency and relevance.