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She was the mother of Noel Tata and stepmother of late Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata. Simone was struggling with symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. After initial treatment at Kings Hospital in Dubai in August this year, he was brought to Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai.
He is survived by his son Noel Tata, his wife Aalu Mistry and his grandchildren Neville, Maya and Leah.
Tata Group condoles the demise of Simon Tata and remembers his great contribution in making Lakme India’s top cosmetics brand, pioneering fashion retail with Westside and guiding philanthropy.
“Ms. Simone Tata, 95, passed away this morning at Breach Candy Hospital, Mumbai, after a brief illness. She will always be remembered for her contribution to the growth of Lakme as India’s leading cosmetic brand and laying the foundation of fashion retail with the Westside chain. She also guided the work of several philanthropic organizations including the Sir Ratan Tata Institute,” a statement said.
It said, “With his positivity and deep determination he faced many challenges in his life and touched many of us deeply. May his soul rest in peace and may God give us the strength to overcome this loss.”
Who was Simone Tata?
Often referred to as the “Cosmetic Queen of India”, Simone Tata was instrumental in making the Lakme brand a household name and later establishing the Westside retail chain. She was born Simone Naval Dunoyer in Geneva, Switzerland in 1930 and later arrived in India as a tourist in 1953.
Two years later, in 1955, Simone married Naval H. Tata (who died in 1989) and began working for the Tata Group in the early 1960s. She joined the Lakme board in 1962, becoming its managing director in 1964 and chairperson in 1982.
Given the lack of established brands in most categories, Lakme chose to move from cosmetics to apparel retail. In March 1998, it acquired Littlewoods International (India) Private Limited (“LIIPL”), a retailing business of ready-made garments and related merchandise, from Littlewoods International Limited, United Kingdom.
Also, on 1 January 1998, Lakme Exports Limited, a subsidiary of Lakme, merged with LIIPL and the resulting firm was named Trent Limited. On 1 July 1998, Trent Limited was merged with Lakme and Lakme Limited was renamed as Trent Limited, which now operates retail formats such as Westside and Zoodio.
Simon also served on the board of Tata Industries, the group’s investment company. Simon made fewer public appearances after his retirement. He was recently seen attending the funeral of Ratan Tata in October 2024.