India's Convergent invests $49m in Puma sportswear spinout

The investment is part of a INR 4.3bn seed round, with the balance coming from individual investors. It marks the launch of Agilitas by three outgoing executives of Puma India with a view to democratising sports and proliferating a culture of sportsmanship domestically.

Agilitas is positioned as an innovation-led sportswear and athleisure solutions platform to invest in an undersized Indian sports ecosystem. The business case is underpinned by the idea that sports footwear accounts for only 16% of the overall footwear market in India – versus a global average of more than 30% and 50% in mature markets – but is the fastest-growing segment.

The company’s founders include Abhishek Ganguly, outgoing managing director of Puma India and Southeast Asia, who also assesses sports and retail businesses for Indian Angel Network. His co-founders are Atul Bajaj, and Amit Prabhu, respectively the outgoing sales director and CFO for Puma India.

Convergent cited upside in India’s sportswear segment related to a renewed national focus on fitness as well as the 'Made in India' domestic manufacturing initiative. The firm said it would work with Agilitas on operations, capital allocation, and long-term business strategy.

"Abhishek, Atul, and Amit are exceptional professionals and have an outstanding track record of building a sports and athleisure-focused business from scratch to become India's largest,” Raghavan said in a statement.

“Their strong leadership capabilities are complemented by their skill in identifying consumer trends early. They are exactly the kind of passionate entrepreneurs whose ideas we love to back with our capital.”

Convergent styles itself as a public and private markets investor, bringing together capital and entrepreneurs with a strong focus on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) principles. Active portfolio standouts include Hindustan Foods, India’s leading contract food manufacturer. Convergent invested INR 1.5bn in 2019.

Raghavan helped launch Fairbridge Capital, the Indian subsidiary of Canada-based Fairfax, in 2010 and was involved in several high-profile transactions such as the 2012 acquisition of the Indian arm of Thomas Cook. He also served as a director at Fairfax India, the publicly traded India investment unit of Fairfax that launched in 2014.

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• Topics
• South Asia
• Consumer
• Early-stage
• India
• Convergent Finance
• manufacturing
• e-commerce