Tauseef Mirza, managing director of Mirza Worldwide, has acquired a 100% stake in informal footwear startup Solethreads, marking a strategic enlargement into India’s semi-premium footwear phase.

Monetary particulars of the transaction weren’t disclosed.

The deal brings collectively Solethreads’ digital-first, youth-focused positioning with Mirza Worldwide’s established manufacturing and design capabilities. The acquisition is anticipated to strengthen home manufacturing, improve product growth and increase the model’s offline presence, together with unique model retailers.

Based in 2020 by Sumant Kakaria, Gaurav Chopra, Vikram Iyer and Aprajit Kathuria, the Gurugram-based firm operates within the open and informal footwear class, providing sneakers, slides and flip-flops by means of each on-line and offline channels.

Solethreads has raised greater than $7 million in funding to this point. In July 2023, it secured $3.7 million in a Sequence A spherical led by Hearth Ventures, with participation from DSG Client Companions and Saama Capital, alongside angel traders Nihir Nalin Parikh and Dhaval Nalin Parikh. Earlier, it had raised round $3.5 million from DSG Client Companions and Saama Capital.

The corporate mentioned it reached a month-to-month run fee of Rs 6 crore inside 4 years of its launch. Initially a digital-first model, it has since expanded into bodily retail, with a presence in round 600 multi-brand retailers and eight unique shops by 2025.

Sumant Kakaria mentioned the acquisition would assist deal with scaling challenges. “At scale, we wanted a long-term resolution for in-house design and home manufacturing capabilities. Because the founding staff strikes on, I’m assured Mirza and his staff will take the model to new heights,” he mentioned.

Mirza mentioned the transfer aligns with a broader ambition to construct a big semi-premium informal footwear model.

“Over previous couple of years, we’ve dabbled in increase few manufacturers from scratch, like Thomas Crick and Off The Hook, and obtained cheap success as nicely. However I wish to construct a big semi-premium model within the informal footwear house, for which Solethreads is on the good stage,” he mentioned.