Indian sportswear startup Agilitas Sports has acquired cricketer Virat Kohli’s athleisure and lifestyle brand One8 in a two-part deal, bringing the star athlete on board as an investor and shareholder.
Agilitas Sports, founded by former Puma India managing director Abhishek Ganguly, will now fully own and operate One8, which was previously licensed to Puma.
The move marks One8’s transition from a partnered brand to an independent label under an Indian company.
Notably, Kohli has invested Rs 40 crore in Agilitas Sports, though the company did not disclose the equity stake he will hold.
Agilitas plans to pursue a multi-channel distribution strategy and will open the first dedicated One8 store by mid-2025.
“There will be a whole roster of products that will be launched under the One8 brand, and global distribution will start in the next 12 to 15 months, with the US as our first market,” Ganguli said.
He said the brand also plans to expand into the United Kingdom and Australia as part of its international rollout.
One8 shoes will range from Rs 4,000 to Rs 10,000. In India, the products will be sold through a shopping app, a web store, online marketplaces and shop-in-shop formats, in addition to exclusive brand outlets of 2,500 to 3,000 square feet.
One8’s offerings will include shoes, apparel and functional lifestyle products designed for both on- and off-field use.
In a post on X, Kohli said that while evaluating the opportunity to invest in Agilitas Sports, Ganguli helped him understand “the force behind it, the manufacturing capabilities, the expertise he has, the kind of people that were going to come onboard.”
“I thought this could become something big and of course I wanted to be a part of it,” Kohli added.
