Three million pairs. Five major platforms. A carbon fibre running shoe. And now ₹23 crore backed by some of India’s most iconic investors. Delhi-based Yoho has been quietly building one of India’s most interesting D2C footwear stories — and this round signals the next phase. Here is the complete story.
The Funding — Key Details at a Glance
| Detail | Information |
| Company | Yoho (yoholife.in) |
| Founded | 2021 |
| Headquarters | Delhi (North West Delhi) |
| Founders | Ahmad Hushsham & Prateek Singhal |
| Amount Raised | ₹23 crore (~$2.7 million) |
| Structure | ₹15 crore equity + ₹8 crore debt |
| Lead Investors | Gulf Islamic Investments (GII) + Rajeev Misra |
| Other Investors | Vijay Shekhar Sharma (Paytm founder) + existing investors |
| Announced | May 21–26, 2026 |
The Round Structure — Equity + Debt
Direct-to-consumer footwear brand Yoho has raised ₹23 crore, including ₹15 crore in equity and ₹8 crore in debt, led by Gulf Islamic Investments (GII) and Rajeev Misra, former CEO of SoftBank Vision Fund. The round also saw participation from Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma and existing investors.
The equity-plus-debt structure is strategic. For a consumer brand at Yoho’s stage:
- The ₹15 crore equity funds growth initiatives — retail expansion, product development, marketing
- The ₹8 crore debt provides working capital — stocking inventory for 2,500 new outlet partnerships, which requires significant upfront capital before revenue flows
Using debt for working capital rather than diluting equity further is a capital-efficient approach that reflects the founders’ operational maturity.
Funding History — Serial Conviction from Same Investors
Yoho had earlier raised ₹20 crore in Series A funding in 2022 and ₹27 crore in a pre-Series B round in 2024.
| Round | Year | Amount | Key Investors |
| Pre-Series A | 2022 | ₹20 crore | Rajeev Misra, Rukam Capital, Vijay Shekhar Sharma |
| Pre-Series B | 2024 | ₹27 crore | Gulf Islamic Investments (lead), Rajeev Misra, VSS, Rukam Capital |
| New Round | May 2026 | ₹23 crore | GII, Rajeev Misra, VSS |
| Total | — | ₹70+ crore | 72+ investors total |
The most notable data point in this table: the same core investors — Rajeev Misra, Gulf Islamic Investments and Vijay Shekhar Sharma — have backed Yoho across multiple rounds. Serial re-investment from sophisticated investors is one of the strongest possible signals of performance and potential.
Who Founded Yoho?
Founded in 2021 by Ahmad Hushsham and Prateek Singhal, Yoho offers casual and formal footwear for both men and women, positioning itself at the intersection of comfort, design, and performance.
The founders identified a gap that large Indian footwear companies — Campus, Liberty, Bata — were not filling: quality, design-forward footwear at accessible prices that could compete with international brands on aesthetics and with domestic brands on affordability.
Their formula: direct-to-consumer to control margins and brand narrative; multi-platform distribution to achieve scale; and technical innovation (Carbonburst™) to build credibility in the performance segment.
What Does Yoho Make? — The Product Range
Founded by Ahmad Hushsham and Prateek Singhal, Yoho offers casual and formal footwear for both men and women, positioning itself at the intersection of comfort, design, and performance.
Yoho’s product architecture spans three distinct consumer needs:
| Category | Products | Target Customer |
| Casual / Lifestyle | Sneakers, loafers, slip-ons, moccasins | Urban millennial and Gen Z daily wear |
| Formal | Dress shoes, oxfords, formal loafers | Office-going professionals |
| Performance Running | Catapult with Carbonburst™ | Marathon runners, serious athletes |
The Hero Product — Catapult with Carbonburst™
Building on the strong reception to its Catapult with Carbonburst™ shoes — designed specifically for marathon runners — Yoho plans to broaden its performance running portfolio.
The Carbonburst™ technology uses carbon fibre in the midsole — the same technology that powers elite marathon racing shoes from Nike and Adidas at a fraction of the price. This positions Yoho as a performance brand accessible to India’s rapidly growing running community — not just a fashion footwear brand.
Traction — 3 Million Pairs and Counting
Since its 2021 launch, Yoho has sold over three million pairs of footwear through its direct-to-consumer platform and online marketplaces including Amazon, Myntra, Flipkart, Ajio, and Nykaa.
Yoho has also expanded distribution through quick commerce platforms such as Blinkit, Zepto, and Swiggy Instamart.
| Channel | Platforms |
| Own Website | yoholife.in |
| E-commerce | Amazon, Myntra, Flipkart, Ajio, Nykaa |
| Quick Commerce | Blinkit, Zepto, Swiggy Instamart |
| Offline (planned) | 2,500 multi-brand outlets + EBOs |
The quick commerce expansion is particularly notable for a footwear brand — Blinkit, Zepto and Instamart are typically associated with FMCG and daily essentials. Yoho’s presence there signals strong impulse purchase demand for its products and a positioning as everyday essential wear rather than considered fashion purchase.
The Offline Expansion Plan — 2,500 Outlets + AI EBOs
Yoho plans to partner with 2,500 multi-brand outlets across Tier I and Tier II cities while also scaling its exclusive brand outlets. These stores will integrate AI-driven solutions to improve shoe fitting, reduce returns, and optimise inventory management.
Two distinct offline tracks:
Track 1 — Multi-Brand Outlets (MBOs): Partnering with 2,500 existing footwear multi-brand retailers across Tier I (Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai) and Tier II cities (Jaipur, Lucknow, Chandigarh, Indore, Coimbatore). MBOs give Yoho physical presence without the capital cost of company-owned stores.
Track 2 — Exclusive Brand Outlets (EBOs) with AI: Yoho’s own branded stores, differentiated by AI-powered features:
- AI Fit Technology — digital foot scanning to recommend the right size before purchase
- Returns Reduction — fewer wrong-size purchases = lower return rates = better unit economics
- Inventory Optimisation — AI systems that predict which sizes and styles to stock at each location
This AI-in-store approach is a direct response to India’s footwear retail challenge: size inconsistency and returns are major pain points that erode margins across the industry. If Yoho solves this at the store level, it creates a genuine competitive moat.
The Investor Profiles — Why These Names Matter
Gulf Islamic Investments (GII)
GII is a Dubai-based global alternative investment management firm managing assets worth over $5 billion. Its investments span real estate, private equity, and growth-stage companies across Asia and the Middle East. GII’s continued backing of Yoho across two rounds signals the firm’s conviction that India’s D2C consumer brand opportunity has sustained cross-cycle potential.
Rajeev Misra — Former CEO, SoftBank Vision Fund
Rajeev Misra spent over a decade at SoftBank, overseeing the deployment of the $100 billion Vision Fund — the largest technology investment fund in history. His personal investments now focus on high-conviction consumer and technology bets in India and Southeast Asia. Re-investing in Yoho across three consecutive rounds is a strong personal conviction signal.
Vijay Shekhar Sharma — Founder, Paytm
India’s most prominent fintech entrepreneur and one of the country’s best-known startup investors. VSS’s continued participation in Yoho reflects a broader interest in India’s branded consumer economy — and his distribution network and ecosystem relationships offer Yoho indirect strategic value beyond pure capital.
The Market Opportunity — India’s Sneaker Boom
India’s sneaker market is among the fastest-growing in Asia-Pacific, expected to reach USD 6 billion by FY32 on the back of a young, fashion-conscious population and the rising wave of athleisure and performance culture.
The structural drivers behind this growth:
- Young population: India has the world’s largest youth demographic — over 600 million people under 25 — who prioritise sneakers as both fashion and identity
- Running culture boom: India now has 25+ major marathons annually; serious runners number in the millions
- Premiumisation: Indian consumers are trading up from unbranded to branded footwear as incomes rise
- Athleisure mainstreaming: Work-from-home habits have normalised casual footwear in professional settings
Yoho’s three-segment approach — casual, formal, performance — positions it to capture all three of these parallel trends simultaneously.
