Elevation Capital leads $10m round of Indian casual fashion startup

India-headquartered youth casual wear brand The Souled Store has raised US$10 million in a series B funding round led by Elevation Capital.

The investment round also saw participation from Delhivery co-founder and CEO Sahil Barua, Zalora CEO Gunjan Soni, Mosaic Wellness co-founder and CEO Revant Bhate, Livspace founder Ramakant Sharma, Urban Ladder founder and CEO Ashish Goel, and Oyo India and Southeast Asia CEO Rohit Kapoor, among others.

The Souled Store co-founders Aditya Sharma (left), Rohin Samtaney, Vedang Patel, and Harsh Lal / Photo credit: The Souled Store

The Souled Store will use the fresh capital to further develop its products and offline retail presence pan India. It will also expand its manufacturing capabilities and step up recruiting.

Founded in 2013, The Souled Store was one of the first brands to bring licensed merchandise to India. It currently has tie-ups with companies such as Disney, Warner Bros, WWE, Indian Premier League, and Viacom18. The Souled Store designs, manufactures, and sells a wide range of apparel products based on themes like superheroes, movies, TV shows. Its products are retailed through both online and offline channels.

“The focus going forward will be to introduce a variety of new product categories, enhance our customer reach, and expand our offline presence pan India to fulfil our aim of crossing 10 billion rupees (US$135 million) GMV (gross merchandise value) by 2025,” said Vedang Patel, co-founder and CEO of The Souled Store.

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With over 3 million registered users on its ecommerce platform, The Souled Store grew profitably during the pandemic last year, according to the company.