Quick Take
- Virat Kohli One8 relaunched under Agilitas Sports on June 21, 2026, with Kohli’s Rs 40 Cr ($4.2 Mn) investment.
- Kohli is now co-founder, not ambassador, holding a 1.94% stake after rejecting a Rs 300 Cr Puma extension.
- The brand targets 50 countries, but India’s celebrity label history is full of duds worth watching closely.
In This Article
Virat Kohli One8 relaunched as an independent sportswear brand on June 21, 2026, backed by Agilitas Sports, with Kohli investing Rs 40 Cr ($4.2 Mn) for a 1.94% stake as co-founder.
The launch at Yashobhoomi in New Delhi marked a shift. For eight years, One8 ran as a Puma sub-brand, with design and margins flowing to Germany. Kohli walked away from a reported Rs 300 Cr Puma extension to build something Indian-owned instead. The company detailed the plan on the official One8 newsroom. The question now is whether he can beat a jinx that has broken almost every celebrity brand before him.
StartupFeed Insight
The real edge here is not Kohli’s face, it is Mochiko Shoes. Agilitas owns India’s largest sports footwear maker, which also builds product for Adidas and Skechers domestically. That solves the exact problem, weak distribution and thin manufacturing, that sank past celebrity labels. Watch the first 12 months of unit economics, not the sneaker hype. If One8 can sell a repeat pair to the same customer within a year, the model works. StartupFeed’s prediction: One8 opens its first standalone store by mid-2026 and starts US distribution within 12 to 15 months, but profitability stays two years out. By Avinash.
The One8 Deal, Explained
The One8 deal is a two-part transaction: Agilitas Sports acquired the brand outright in December 2025, and Virat Kohli invested Rs 40 Cr in his personal capacity to join as co-founder. StartupFeed traced the structure across company announcements and Registrar of Companies filings.
| Metric | Detail | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Kohli’s Investment | Rs 40 Cr ($4.2 Mn) | Personal capital, for a 1.94% stake |
| Acquirer | Agilitas Sports | Founded 2023 by Abhishek Ganguly |
| Deal Type | Brand acquisition plus investment | One8 now fully Indian-owned |
| Agilitas Funding | Over Rs 600 Cr raised | From Convergent Finance, Nexus Venture Partners |
| Manufacturing Arm | Mochiko Shoes | India’s largest sports footwear maker |
| Launch Date | June 21, 2026 | Yashobhoomi, New Delhi |
The most striking detail is the founder framing. Ganguly took Puma India from Rs 20 Cr to Rs 3,900 Cr over 18 years, per company data, before leaving to build Agilitas. In an interview with Business Standard, Ganguly said Kohli is now an investor and shareholder, not just a brand face. The infrastructure behind Virat Kohli One8 is heavier than any earlier celebrity launch.
About One8 and Agilitas Sports
One8 is a high-performance sportswear brand co-founded by Virat Kohli, now owned by Agilitas Sports. Agilitas was founded in 2023 in Bengaluru by Abhishek Ganguly, former managing director of Puma India. Its model spans footwear, apparel and accessories, sold through e-commerce and exclusive stores. The company owns manufacturer Mochiko Shoes and holds India licensing rights for Lotto. Key backers include Convergent Finance and Nexus Venture Partners.
Why Do Celebrity Brands Fail in India?
Celebrity brands fail in India because star power alone does not fix weak distribution, patchy innovation, or pricing missteps once the initial hype fades. The Indian market is full of celebrity-backed labels that lost momentum or sold to larger companies.
“There are more sports celebrity-launched failures than success stories as everything is overshadowed by fame,” said Satbir Singh, founder of ad agency Thinkstr, adding that Kohli is among the few who can buck the trend.
The list of strugglers is long. Nykaa has been in talks to acquire Deepika Padukone’s 82°E. Alia Bhatt sold a majority stake in Ed-a-Mamma to Reliance Retail. Sachin Tendulkar’s Sach toothpaste, Anushka Sharma’s Nush, Karan Johar’s Tyaani jewellery, and SKULT by Shahid Kapoor have all faced headwinds. Even Kohli’s own portfolio shows the strain: Wrogn, his fashion label, saw total income fall 12.5% to Rs 232.34 Cr in FY25 from Rs 265.65 Cr, while net losses widened 32% to Rs 75.5 Cr, according to Registrar of Companies filings.
What Makes Virat Kohli One8 Different?
Virat Kohli One8 differs from past celebrity brands on one core point: Kohli is the builder, not just the face. He reportedly rejected 17 shoe prototypes before approving the 18th, taking direct creative control as co-founder rather than lending his name to a licensing deal.
“Kohli had a headstart with the Puma tie-up earlier, and he has the resources to make sure logistics and operations are taken care of,” Singh said, noting that as Kohli nears full retirement, he can give One8 his full attention.
The business logic sits in the supply chain. Agilitas is crashing the product cycle using fast prototyping, AI and 3D modelling, aiming to turn around a shoe from scratch to delivery in under three months versus roughly two years at a global giant, per Ganguly. The brand is also pricing premium, with cricket spikes at Rs 13,999 and lifestyle sneakers from Rs 6,999, positioning One8 against athlete-led labels worldwide rather than mass-market rivals.
Who Does One8 Compete With?
One8 competes directly with global sportswear giants operating in India, chiefly its own former partner Puma, alongside Nike and Adidas. Unlike them, One8 is pitching itself as India’s first home-grown high-performance brand with global ambition.
| Brand | Origin | One8’s Angle |
|---|---|---|
| Puma | Germany | Former One8 partner, now a rival |
| Nike / Adidas | US / Germany | Global scale, but no Indian identity |
| One8 | India | Local manufacturing, founder-led design |
What makes One8 different is ownership of the full stack: an Indian founder-athlete, Indian manufacturing through Mochiko, and control over creative direction, all under one roof. The early signal is promising: One8 reported an Instagram community of over 1.6 million within seven days of debut, built through organic growth, per company statements.
What’s Next
Agilitas plans to open the first standalone One8 store by the end of 2026, followed by global distribution starting with the US market within 12 to 15 months. The UK and Australia are next on the international roadmap. Ganguly has set an ambitious bar, saying success means getting a consumer to buy four times within the first year. Can an Indian brand finally crack a code that fame alone never could?
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Written by Avinash. Have a tip? Write to us at editorial@startupfeed.in.
