Kusha Kapila’s Shapewear Brand UnderNeat Raises ₹8–10 Crore in Seed Round from Fireside Ventures and Mamaearth’s Ghazal Alagh:

Sources have revealed to Moneycontrol that funding from Fireside Ventures has been received by the influencer-turned-actor Kusha Kapila for his newly launched UnderNeat shapewear alongside Mamaearth cofounder Ghazal Alagh who is also investing.

Although the precise amount has not yet been made publicly available, the seed funding round is surmised to be somewhere between 8 to 10 crore rupees.

In response to a Moneycontrol inquiry, co-founder Vimarsh Razan confirmed the funds from outside investors saying this round was closed and funds were raised but did not provide the amount nor the names of other investors who participated in the deal.

This brand was launched on March 30 and is now starting to secure a foothold within a sector that has mostly been empty in India. This comes shortly before the brand's logic-defying success during their first 2 days of business where they gained roughly 176,000 followers on Instagram, utilizing Kapila’s huge follower base of 4.1 million.

UnderNeat is set to claim the strategically important “mass premium” sector of the shapewear market according to a presentation deck seen by Moneycontrol.

The playbook is heavily inspired by Kim Kardashian’s Skims, which started out as a D2C company in 2019 and has since consolidated itself as a $4 billion brand now worth over $1 billion in annual net sales.

Our plan for the shapewear brand is to establish a category leadershipwithin emerging markets in India. We are highly influenced by Skims, a cult American brand that was launched in 2019 and grew... we hope to have similar success in India within the Indian economy,” the deck states.

The company intends to offer lower prices in comparison to Skims as an option, while making their products 30-40 percent more affordable for easier consumption, it said.

UnderNeat will initially offer shapewear (waist cinchers, corsets, etc.), outer wear such as leggings, shorts, tees which will be followed up with accessories, swimwear and loungewear for women aged 18 to 40.

New market

These growth targets for UnderNeat are aligned with the Indian shapewear market which is still fresh, untapped, and poorly served.

The report states that the worldwide compression and shapewear market, which was $4.37 billion in 2024, is estimated to increase to $8.91 billion by 2034, at a CAGR of 7.5 percent according to Global Markets Insights.

It is quite evident that the industry is at its nascent stage in India. The current market size is at 196 million U.S. dollars and is expected to grow 11.3 percent CAGR between the years 2024 and 2031, according to a report by Cognitive Market Research.

Other growth drivers will include fabric technology improvements, which will enable brands to produce hybrid daily wear shapewear and other developments.

ProMarkets Report stated that “As semi-urban cities grow economically, people tend to spend more on their looks, which increases the need for shapewear.”

“They also affect the Indian market, where International brands Spanx and Skims have single-handedly made shapewear popular. Locally, the success of these brands has motivated other start ups to come up with new ideas and expand their markets,” explain the respondents.

Along with Zivame, Clovia, Triumph, Dermawear and C9 Airwear, Pretty Secrets also joins the list of Indian retail brands selling shapewear and catering to all types of customers. Smilzo, Swee, and Adorna (SHK Brands) are also successful in filing the gap.

Also, newer players like ButtChique, The Active Story and KRVYY, which is backed by Titan Capital, are bringing their innovations with custom fit designs for varied body shapes. There is a lot of variance in pricing in this category, which starts as low as Rs 300 and can go up Rs 4500.

In this context, UnderNeat is pursuing a wider market that encompasses young adults looking for cost-effective stylish shapewear with light-to-medium control from fashion-centric brands like H&M, Zivame, and Clovia.

The 30-45 year professionals are more inclined to the mid and premium segments with brands like Enamor and Marks and Spencer’s.

The brand has a market entry strategy that combines D2C on the website and later offline with premium retail outlets. The marketing will be mostly through influencers and the powerful personal brand of Kapila will be utilized.

“We aim to be the first brand on the minds of Indian women when its comes to shapewear just like SKIMS does it globally,” the deck flaunted.

The rise of creator-led D2C brands

Entering a start-up ecosystem is a trend now for digital creators, who are noticed to use their personal brands to establish businesses for consumers.

As influencers, having a dedicated audience and the ability to engage them, these people have tremendous buying power which in turn can be showcased to market brands and products which most of them are currently doing under D2C brands.

In the last couple of years, a number of Indian creators have taken to entrepreneurship, catering to the fashion, beauty, and lifestyle domains.

Deeksha Khurana, a recognized fashion influencer, created clothing brand Dee Clothing, while Diipa Büller-Khosla, a global fashion and beauty influencer, recently launched her Ayurvedic beauty brand, Inde Wild, which received $5 million from Unilever Ventures.

Pune-based influencer Shaurya Sanadhya has added fashion retail to her expanding Shaurya Sanadhya brand, while Juhi Godambe started Arabellaa, a resort-wear label.

As one of the biggest content creators in India, Bhuvan Bam made headlines when he became an investor and co-founder at Peppy, marking another example of the blend of entertainment and business.