Online youth fashion brand Styched has acquired Flatheads, a direct-to-customer (D2C) online casual sneaker startup that gained fame on Shark Tank India season 2. The all-equity transaction marks Styched’s foray into the footwear segment.
Founded in 2018 by Ganesh Balakrishnan and Utkarsh Biradar, Flatheads is a Bengaluru-based brand that designs all-day-wear casual sneakers for the urban audience. The company has raised funding from We Founder Circle, LetsVenture, and angel investors.
With the acquisition, Styched will gain access to Flatheads’ design and manufacturing capabilities, as well as its customer base. The company plans to integrate Flatheads’ products into its own e-commerce platform and expand its distribution network.
On the acquisition Soumajit Bhowmik, chief executive officer, Styched affirmed, “The acquisition opportunity came to us through a common investor, and we felt it would be a perfect deal for us considering we wanted to launch sneakers in a big way within Styched as well. The technical know-how of Flatheads would really help us create a wide range of affordable sneakers collection. So, while Styched will continue to play in the sub-1000 Rs segment, the semi-premium segment would have Flatheads as the flagship brand.”
Ganesh Balakrishnan, co-founder, Flatheads said, “Styched has changed the operating model of creating and delivering fashion, and I’m very excited to see Flatheads taking the next leap together. The market is evolving, and it will be a unique journey for the category, different from other parts of the world.”
Following the acquisition, Styched will take over the operations and management of Flatheads while keeping its existing product range intact. Styched intends to strengthen its footwear department through an aggressive hiring phase, aiming to enhance the overall offerings. By incorporating its production-on-demand technology, Styched plans to seamlessly expand Flatheads’ collection.
Styched, a fashion apparel brand based in Bengaluru, was founded in 2019 by fashion enthusiasts Soumajit Bhowmik, Durga Madhab Dash, and Joseph Sony. With backgrounds in fashion e-commerce and education from prestigious institutions like IIT Kharagpur and ISB (Indian School of Business), they bring a wealth of experience to the business.a