The India sports footwear and activewear market is currently at $9B, and is expected to grow to $20B by 2025. Despite the immense growth potential, the majority of this market is still highly unorganized.
Source: Avendus
Global premium brands such as Nike, Adidas, and Puma have not been able to deeply penetrate the Indian market due to relatively higher price points as well as growing brand fatigue. On the other end, there is no high-performance and aspirational brands in the affordable segment for the Indian consumer.
With an entire generation of consumers defined by rising disposable income, greater aspiration, and a stronger affinity to experiment with digital-first brands — there is a large opportunity for a resonant sports brand to be built from India.
Why Kalaari Invested In Elevar Sports
Elevar Sports is a direct-to-consumer sports brand creating innovative and fashionable athletic footwear and cricket equipment by combining cutting-edge design & engineering. The philosophy of the brand rests on three pillars -offering high-quality products that are desirable, affordable and high-performance.
Consumers today want to associate with brands that embody individuality. Brands that are innovative & disruptive. Most importantly, brands that stand for something. Elevar is an authentic representation of these values.
Currently, Elevar’s two main product lines are their Cricket Bats and the Arc Racer Performance Sneakers.
Elevar bats provide a superior experience for players with their ergonomically designed handle, superior grip technology, and aerodynamic blade.
The Arc Racer leverages E-TPU (Expanded thermoplastic polyurethane) technology to create a lighter, faster, more durable, and comfortable shoe than any other comparable in its segment. Its futuristic design philosophy makes it the ideal hybrid of a performance and lifestyle sneaker.
Their products have received excellent customer love, highlighted by their industry leading low return rates and rising NPS scores. Their design philosophy and brand positioning has resonated with their customers, as showcased by their Instagram and Facebook engagement rates which stand at 4x and 25x above industry standard.
Elevar is also perfectly poised to cater to the fast-growing shift in consumer behaviour towards athleisure, a segment that’s growing at 20–25% YoY. As the lines between performance wear and casual wear continue to blur, Elevar’s products and design philosophy strikes a perfect chord with the millennial consumer of today.
When we first met with the founders — Aayush Tapuriah and Kunal Joshi — we recognized the depth with which they understood the market. Their relentless focus on customer experience & product innovation as well as their vision to build an India-first brand led to our conviction behind the company. They are sports junkies themselves and have a strong understanding of their target audience, along with deep insights into what it takes to build an iconic, resonant brand.
From Aayush, Co-founder of Elevar, “Kalaari has an incredible track record of partnering with founders early in their journey and helping them build great companies. What struck us in our very first call with Vani was the accessibility, clarity and candor with which she spoke to us. It’s exactly the kind of like minded, supportive and long-term partner we are looking for to help in our vision of making Elevar an iconic and enduring consumer brand.”
We would like to thank Vishesh of Temasek for introducing us to the Elevar team. We are also excited to co-invest along with Dream Sports.
We are proud to partner with Elevar Sports as they execute on their vision to build a disruptive sports and apparel brand from India.
Kalaari Capital is an early-stage, technology-focused venture capital firm based out of Bengaluru, India. Since 2006, Kalaari has empowered visionary entrepreneurs building unique solutions that reshape the way Indians live, work, consume and transact. The firm’s ethos is to partner early with founders and work with them to navigate the inevitable challenges of fostering ideas into successful businesses. At its core, Kalaari believes in building long-term relationships based on trust, transparency, authenticity, and respect.
If you are an entrepreneur (or know an entrepreneur) building a company in the D2C space, please write to us at d2c@kalaari.com.
Elevar is hiring for roles in Marketing, Design, and Operations. You can reach out to them at info@elevarsports.com
