P•TAL Closes $3M Series A to Expand Heritage Metalware Brand Worldwide; Connecticut Innovations Makes First India Bet

• The round was led by VC Grid and Rainmatter by Nithin Kamath.
• P•TAL generates over 55% of its business from global markets and is actively expanding its presence.

P•TAL (Punjab Thathera Art Legacy), India’s handcrafted copper, brass, and bronze brand blending heritage with modern lifestyle, has raised USD 3 million in its Series A round to bolster its presence in India and accelerate growth across global markets. The round was led by VC Grid, bringing together a powerful community of family offices and accomplished founders, including Ekamya Ventures, the Salarpuria Group, LNB Group and several other marquee backers and Rainmatter, the fund backed by Nithin Kamath of Zerodha.

Connecticut Innovations, the US-based venture firm, also participated, marking its first investment in an Indian company. The round saw participation from Anicut Capital, Zero Pearl VC, Jaipur Rugs Family Office, Ramakant Sharma (Livspace), Sanjay Kapoor (Genesis Luxury by Reliance), Avnish Anand (Caratlane), Shibam Das (Atomberg), and Dr Ritesh Malik (Innov8).

P•TAL’s exports to the US, UK, Europe, and the Middle East account for more than 55% of its total business. The brand now aims to deepen expansion across these regions, driven by growing demand for sustainable, wellness-focused lifestyle products. Over the next three to five years, its international business is projected to contribute over 75% of overall revenue. Investments will be directed towards product innovation, technology-led supply chain efficiencies, and empowering artisan communities in India.

On the funding announcement, Aditya Agrawal, Co-founder and CEO of P•TAL said “This fundraise is not just capital; it means something deeper for us. It’s a partnership with visionary investors, who believe as deeply as we do in the revival of beauty and the benefits of traditional metals like brass, copper and bronze and their place in the global homes and kitchens. We stand at the intersection of timeless heritage and modern utility, and this partnership fuels our mission to take P•TAL from the homes of India’s artisans to households across the world. With this backing, we are poised to scale globally, reimagining what ‘Made in India’ means: craft that carries soul, design that speaks the future, and products that are healthy and last generations. This is just the beginning, and together, we are building a brand that will make India proud on the world stage.”

“P•TAL is a rare blend of purpose and performance — rooted in a strong ethos while charting a disciplined growth trajectory. By reviving a centuries-old craft and empowering artisan communities, the founders are building a brand with global resonance. At VC Grid, we are excited to back founders who combine clarity of vision with deep purpose, and with this growth capital, we believe P•TAL is poised to become both a household name and a global ambassador of Indian craftsmanship and conscious living.” said Vansh Oberoi, Founder & Managing Partner, VC Grid

Speaking on the investment, Nithin Kamath, Founder & CEO, Zerodha said, “P•TAL has built an ecosystem that honours traditional craftsmanship by empowering artisan families. It is remarkable that these artisans have increased their earning potential from about Rs 2,500 to Rs 60,000, with one of them even holding ESOPs in the company. With a majority of the revenue coming from outside India, it is encouraging to see Indian heritage crafts finding their place across the world.”

Building on its growing consumer traction, P•TAL also secured an all-sharks deal on Shark Tank India Season 3. This milestone spotlighted the brand’s vision and reinforced investor confidence in its potential to scale globally. The company’s revenues have climbed from ₹5 crore ARR to ₹50 crore ARR since its previous fundraise, underscoring the brand’s rapid scale-up. Today, P•TAL serves quality-conscious households and wellness enthusiasts globally, with 60% of international revenue coming from foreign buyers. The company is targeting ₹150 crore ARR within the next twelve months, aiming to cement its position as a profitable, sustainable luxury brand redefining Indian craftsmanship worldwide.

About P-TAL:

Launched as a student initiative at Shri Ram College of Commerce by Aditya Agrawal, Kirti Goel, and Gaurav Garg, P•TAL has evolved into a fast-scaling premium lifestyle brand. The company partners with 100+ artisan families, raising their monthly incomes from as little as ₹2,000 to over ₹60,000, while safeguarding a 500-year-old legacy. P•TAL’s flagship stores in Delhi—GK-1 and Vasant Kunj—are complemented by a digital presence on Shopify, Amazon, Instamart, Blinkit, and global marketplaces.

With its philosophy of “Artful Utility”, P•TAL is blending heritage, health, and design to build India’s first truly global heritage and lifestyle brand. Positioned at the intersection of wellness, sustainability, and conscious luxury, the company is primed to tap into a $1 billion premium kitchenware market in India and a $10 billion-plus global opportunity.

D2C Lifestyle Brand eské Raises $1.5 Mn (INR 12 Crores) in Pre-Series A Funding Led by Mistry Ventures

eské, a Mumbai-based Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) lifestyle brand that offers premium handbags, briefcases and accessories has raised a total of $1.5 Mn (INR 12 Crores), in a pre-series A round of funding led by Mistry Ventures. This round also witnessed continued support from Fluid Ventures, one of eské's existing investors.

Having been a key supplier for international luxury brands, eské was launched five years ago, and has seen tremendous traction in a short span of time. Born in India, and made for the world, eské offers a range of handbags, briefcases, and accessories for the global modern consumer in the price range of Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 10,000.

The brand has a strong online presence through its own website and various e-commerce platforms, as well as offline stores in select cities across India. eské plans to use the fresh funds to expand its product portfolio, open experience centres, enhance its technology platform, and enter new markets.

Commenting on the fundraise, Shivam Khanna, founder and CEO of eské, said – “Humbled to partner with Mistry Ventures this early in our journey. Their long-term approach and patient capital will allow us to build eské into a world-class brand, with robust unit economics. India has long been known as a product exporter and brand importer. We will change that. Leveraging our decades of manufacturing expertise producing for the world’s finest brands, we will unleash our manufacturing capabilities, combining it with technology, to build a globally recognized lifestyle brand from India.”

Zahan Mistry of Mistry Ventures said that they were impressed by eské’s vision and execution. “The product quality of eské stands well above anything we have seen in the market. Their innovative and integrated supply-chain enables them to turn around inventory, and new styles extremely fast. We believe that eské has the potential to become a beloved brand in this space, and we are excited to partner with them in their journey”.

About eské:

eské is a direct-to-consumer lifestyle brand that offers premium handbags, briefcases and accessories for the global modern millennial. eské is pioneering the customer-to-manufacturer (C2M) model, leveraging its deep manufacturing expertise, in building a global brand from India. eské was founded in 2018 by Shivam Khanna, a serial entrepreneur with over 10 years of experience in the manufacturing.

For more information, visit: www.eske.in

About Mistry Ventures:

Mistry Ventures is a venture capital firm based in Mumbai. Mistry Ventures was set up by late Mr. Cyrus Mistry, with an aim to incubate new ventures, provide seed, early-stage and growth capital to start-ups. Mistry Ventures has been actively involved in investing in start-ups across multiple domains, including D2C, SAAS, agritech, and more. The firm seeks to back ventures that demonstrate disruptive ideas, strong leadership, and a clear vision for the future.

10 Indian Lifestyle Brands That Are Here With Unique Offerings!

Lifestyle brands work to create an emotional link between the goods or services they offer with a particular lifestyle perception. It was earlier limited to clothing stuff, drinks, or perhaps food, but now the very category of lifestyle products is wider with the digital spread. Not just is this trend redefining daily choices and consumer behaviour but also catching on faster than expected. Right from how a person avails a product or a service to adopting new healthcare options. It will be safe to say that with a little more time, we might be able to completely cut the connection with the age-old approach and methods.

Here is the list of some Indian brands with distinctive and unique offerings: -

Avni

The start-up has developed environmentally friendly items like cotton disposable pads and reusable, organic sanitary pads. This company is revolutionizing how women experience their menstrual cycles. Women's perceptions of safety are changing thanks to their awareness of goods, which are influenced by both modern science and Ayurveda. Sujata Pawar and Apurv Agarwal founded Avni in 2020, the startup has been named Avni, which means Earth as a symbolic womanly personification of the mother of all life which offers cutting-edge and environmentally friendly period care products like sanitary pads and panty liners. Their products are washable, reusable, and environmentally safe.

Yes Madam

Yes Madam is India's Most Affordable Home Salon and a tech-enabled platform for beauty and wellness that brings salon and spa services to customers' homes. With over 1 million+ customers, 2000+ beauty professionals, and a presence across 35+ cities of India, the home salon brand strives to be the one-stop-Salon and Spa for a consumer. Yes Madam, India's Leading Salon at Home, was established in 2016 by Mayank and Aditya Arya and is currently operating in over 30 Indian cities. The brand has significantly impacted the beauty and salon industry with its mono-dosages and unique pricing model that starts at RS 6 per minute. Their goal is to provide top-notch salon and wellness services at clients' homes using top-notch personnel and industry-leading goods.

HotNot

Hotnot is the first-ever fashion social media platform where users can dictate fashion trends and save their favorites. It was founded in 2021 by Frederick Devarampati. With in-house styling tips and recommendations from fashion creators, Hotnot offers a new and convenient online shopping experience. From following the latest trends to shopping for your favorite looks by creators and influencers you love, this app is designed to give you the power to not just follow those trends but also to dictate them.

Zouk

Bringing together the contemporary and the traditional, Zouk weaves subtle elegance into your lifestyle. Handcrafted, Cruelty-free, and Proudly Indian, Zouk brings vibrant Indian culture to the modern world. Zouk is a proud Indian and 100% vegan brand founded by Disha Singh. The company manufactures laptop bags, handbags, women's office bags, female wallets, small wallets, sling bags, bucket bags, backpacks, and travel pouches for both sexes. They also produce vegan leather purses and other vegan items out of Ikat and Jute Khadi fabrics where expert craftspeople make each bag individually. They exclusively sell online and offer to ship to every part of India. Office workers, stay-at-home moms, and college students can all benefit from choosing the products.

Aastey

Aastey is a size-inclusive sustainable activewear brand for all women. From creating India’s first sustainable and size-inclusive leggings to reaching a community of more than 60,00+ women across cities, Aastey is making waves in the athleisure space.

Launched amid the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021, Mumbai-based Aastey is the country’s first D2C (direct-to-consumer) startup to crack the manufacturing of recycled polyester apparel, according to its founders. The startup offers a wide range of options from leggings and sports bras, to yoga mats, eye masks, tote bags, and more. A Sanskrit word, Aastey means to be fully present in every moment. Apart from its own website, it also sells on Amazon and Myntra.

Nicobar

Nicobar is a contemporary lifestyle brand that combines Indian aesthetics with modern design. They offer a range of clothing, home decor, and travel accessories inspired by nature, simplicity, and comfort. Nicobar is a brand that focuses on well-designed products that channel the modern Indian way of living, harmoniously blending form with functionality, and creativity with culture.

The brand has engaged with local artisans and the design community to build a contemporary product line across fashion, home, and travel accessories. Their products fall within the verticals of house & home, men’s fashion, women’s fashion, accessories, and jewellery. Within these, some of the items on offer are dining, barware, décor, dresses, and overlays for women, saris, and dupattas, kurtas and jackets for men, trousers, scarves, clutches, pins and brooches, and silver jewellery among others.

Tjori

Tjori is an Indian brand that focuses on promoting traditional craftsmanship and sustainable practices. They offer a wide range of clothing, accessories, skincare, and home decor products inspired by Indian heritage and crafted by artisans. Tjori was launched online in 2012 and retails from its dedicated e-commerce site as well as its Instagram Shop.

Tjori is a multi-category, online-first artisanal ethnic brand that includes apparel, wellness, home, and mother and child products. The brand focuses on handmade products and the goodness of traditional Indian ingredients. The brand retails a range of womenswear such as kurtas, dresses, and tops as well as footwear, bags, accessories, jewellery, children’s wear, and home décor.

At present, Tjori caters to 195 countries across the globe through digital marketing and its e-commerce website. They help deliver the orders through our courier service partner, FedX.

The Mad Dresser

The Mad Dresser founded in 2020 offers an online personal shopping and styling service for women. They provide a new convenient way of shopping. Founded by the sister trio Tanvi Gupta, Vanshika Gupta, and Prachi Gupta with its headquarters in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, and following the B2C business model. The TMD Box is a surprise box of Western wear delivered at your doorstep. It is curated by their team of in-house stylists. They select clothes based on your preferences from hundreds of brands and thousands of styles. They pick items for you that would suit your body type and help you move out of your comfort zone. They are here to make shopping simpler, easier, and immersive.

Stumbl

Launched in December 2022 by Maruthy Ramgandhi, Ayyappan Lakshmanan, and Abhishekk Handa, the company claims to have served more than 10,000 young women to date, with 20 percent becoming repeat customers. The company’s vision is to be the No.1 fashion platform for women of today. A platform that will give them the fastest and most reliable access to the latest fashion trends. Building this new, highly engaged shopping experience with social interaction at its core, providing our users with shoppable mood boards. Think of Instagram or Pinterest with shop-as-you-scroll functionality that marries discovery and commerce.

HeSpoke Originals

Founded in 2020 by Prem Shah & Sonal Jain, the fastest fast-fashion D2C menswear brand fulfilling a need for constant newness. We launch new Styles Designed Digitally in Metaverse Technology, Faster & Guilt-Free. With a robust design-to-sales cycle of 300 hrs, we've faster market validation. HeSpoke is launching new styles every 300 hours. Having an edge over others by reduced time to market, faster market validation, increased product innovation, and a smaller environmental footprint. There will be a time when what you see at the fashion ramp today would be available to shop at HeSpoke within minutes.

Holistic Lifestyle Coach Luke Coutinho Launches a Free E-book - a New Way of Living, to Help Readers Discover the Wellness Route

• A wellness-focused virtual read aiming to bring the body in harmony with nature
• An insightful and inspiring read to modify your lifestyle in accordance with the circadian rhythm
• Second-in-line as a free book to the world emphasizing on holistic health and wellness
   

Luke Coutinho, a globally renowned Holistic Lifestyle Coach and an expert in Integrative Medicine has recently launched his second e-book ‘A New Way of Living’ as a free gift to India and the world. Being authored by the wellness aficionado himself, this book emphasizes the intelligence of our bodies in connection with nature.

Luke’s previous e-book ‘The Magic Immunity Pill – Lifestyle’ with Shilpa Shetty, that was also a free gift to the readers, has crossed 60k+ downloads since its launch and is a huge success across India and overseas. Joining the bandwagon of books on healthy lifestyle is - A New Way of Living, an e-book- that has already garnered over 50K+ downloads from all across the globe within the first hour of its release.

The goal of the book is to highlight the importance of syncing your body's internal clock - the circadian rhythm and also mentions guidelines to be followed for being in harmony with nature. This virtual read is insightful and inspiring as it has positive stories and feedbacks from people who have embraced this way of living and seen phenomenal changes in their health and well-being. The book gives you an insight on each of these guidelines, along with scientific explanations. Adding a non-fictional touch to the book is a chapter dedicated to night-shift workers who due to their jobs, struggle to live according to the circadian cycle.

Through years of experience as a holistic lifestyle coach, Luke’s proficiency as a wellness leader has provided him with transformational tools to assist people in making the necessary lifestyle modifications. A New Way of Living emphasizes on the significance of having a strong immunity and uses it as a catalyst to make lifestyle changes for living within the boundaries and laws of nature. Through this book, Luke encourages readers to make an effort to sync back the body that has been operating outside the laws of the nature.

Luke’s backend coaching complements each chapter of the book thus aiding the readers with transformational tools that will change their life.

According to Luke Coutinho, Holistic Lifestyle Coach, Integrative Medicine, “Through the launch of A New Way of Living, we aim to help masses regain their health in the most effortless ways by operating within the laws of nature. The outside environment that controls our inner setting is the body’s intelligence that exists in the trillions of cells present in our body. During and post-pandemic times, the way forward is to live according to the ‘new way of living’- circadian rhythm. This book is all about bringing our health and lifestyle in tandem with nature. We need to align all that we do, according to the circadian rhythm to help restore, regain and reset our health in a massive way.’’