New Delhi: Footwear startup RARA Barefoot has raised USD 500,000 in an oversubscribed pre-seed round and launched its debut sneaker line, the company said in a press release recently.
The round included founders and senior executives from Zomato, Urban Company, Tata 1mg, Shyft, and HexaHealth, as well as Managing Directors and Partners from ChrysCapital and BCG. The funding will support national D2C rollout, selective offline partnerships, and local manufacturing scale-up.
“Our early backers have built unicorns and opened new categories.” Manas Tripathi, Co-founder, added, “Having that perspective at our table gives us the confidence to build RARA into a brand that redefines how India thinks about performance footwear,” said Varun Mimani, co-founder.
RARA’s sneakers are designed to support natural biomechanics, with a flat sole, wide toe box, and flexible construction, all manufactured in India.
According to Grand View Research, India’s sneaker market is expected to reach USD 4,665.9 million by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 5.7 per cent, creating scope for performance-wellness footwear. RARA launches as a D2C brand, with plans to expand through multi-brand stores and offline pop-ups in major cities in 2026.
