Now Reading: Agilitas aims to rival Nike, Adidas with integrated sportswear play
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Agilitas aims to rival Nike, Adidas with integrated sportswear play
Agilitas aims to rival Nike, Adidas with integrated sportswear play
Agilitas, a three-year-old sportswear startup that has raised Rs 225 crore, is building an integrated business covering manufacturing, brands and retail to compete with global giants like Nike and Adidas. The company's portfolio includes Mochiko Shoes, Virat Kohli's lifestyle brand One8, and an exclusive 40-year licence for Lotto Sport Italia. CEO Abhishek Ganguly, former Puma India managing director, said the strategy is to create leverage that rivals will find hard to replicate.
Agilitas is also adding another US-based sportswear brand to its portfolio, though the name has not been disclosed. The startup is backed by Rainmatter and has Kohli as an investor and co-creator of One8, with the cricketer investing about Rs 40 crore. Ganguly said Indian brands have historically lacked the combination of differentiated products, supply-chain control and multi-channel distribution needed to compete globally, and he aims to fix that.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The challenge for Agilitas is not just building scale but proving that a homegrown brand can command a premium beyond celebrity endorsement. India's sportswear market is dominated by multinationals with decades of distribution and marketing muscle. Agilitas owns a manufacturing base through Mochiko Shoes, which already supplies global brands, giving it supply-chain control most Indian consumer startups lack. The 40-year Lotto licence provides an established European brand name. The key question is whether One8 can sustain consumer interest once Kohli's active promotion fades, and whether the US brand addition will bring genuine global distribution. The next milestone to watch is the unnamed US brand's launch timeline and retail expansion numbers.
Source: inc42.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Methodology and corrections.
