Bengaluru: Ex-India captain Virat Kohli has invested Rs 40 crore in sports platform Agilitas Sports, co-founded by former Puma India MD Abhishek Ganguly. Agilitas is also acquiring One8, the sportswear brand co-created by Kohli, to fast-track its ambition of crafting India’s high-performance sportswear label.In April, Kohli ended his endorsement deal with Puma and has instead taken a stake in Agilitas. As part of the transaction, he joins Agilitas as an investor and co-founder of One8.Ganguly said Agilitas will reposition One8 as India’s leading homegrown high-performance sports brand, geared for global markets. “The plan is to compete with top international brands across footwear, apparel, accessories and sporting goods — and across multiple sports categories rather than a single discipline. Commercially, One8 will launch with an omnichannel approach — an e-commerce store and app will go live first with pre-orders in the coming weeks, followed by exclusive stores by mid-next year. Agilitas intends to combine online reach with offline retail stores and multi-brand channels,” said Ganguly.He said distribution will be handled directly by Agilitas rather than via global licensing; the company will instead leverage its partners’ global networks to secure distribution partners in priority markets. “India is the first market, with plans to enter the US, UK and Australia by FY26–27 end. Agilitas positions this as a long-horizon play. The partnership with Kohli is framed as a decades-long collaboration to build one8 into a global performance brand — with Kohli remaining an active user as the brand scales from India into global markets,” he said.With this partnership, One8 will focus on high-performance footwear, training apparel and sports-led lifestyle products rooted in functionality and athlete-first design. “What inspired me to bring one8 to Agilitas was the depth of its manufacturing, the strength of the people, the structure they’ve built, and Abhishek’s expertise. I am deeply involved in the creative process of everything that comes out. Nothing excites me more than building something that represents quiet confidence, gives me my Indian identity, and takes it from India to the world,” Kohli said. In 2023, Agilitas acquired Mochiko Shoes to bolster its manufacturing footprint. Last year, it acquired the brand license for Italian sports brand Lotto from owner WHP Global. Agilitas is also opening Sports Yard, a 30,000 sft multi-brand retail concept in Bengaluru. Ganguly said Agilitas remains profitable at the group level, while acknowledging that brand growth (R&D, marketing and store roll-outs) will require additional capital. The company plans to raise further funds in the near-term. Agilitas Sports is a vertically integrated sports platform with capabilities across manufacturing, R&D, brand-building and retail distribution. Backed by Convergent Finance and Nexus Venture Partners, the company is seeing strong momentum across its verticals. Mochiko’s revenues have risen sharply since the acquisition, increasing from about Rs 640 crore in FY23 to a projected Rs 1,450 crore by the end of this fiscal. Mochiko makes products for leading brands including Adidas, Puma, New Balance, Skechers, Reebok, Asics, Crocs, Decathlon, Clarks, and US Polo. Ganguly said Agilitas recent brand launches are also gaining traction — Lotto is already contributing to its annualised run-rate.
