The Pant Project, a burgeoning fashion brand specializing in custom-made and ready-to-wear pants, has raised $4.25 million in its maiden funding round. This round was led by Sorin Investments, an early-stage investment firm founded by former KKR India chief executive Sanjay Nayar.
Additional participation came from MGA Ventures, Huddle, Dexter Ventures, Indian Silicon Valley, and notable angel investors including Arjun Vaidya, founder of Dr Vaidya’s, and Avni Biyani, founder of Foodstories.
Dhruv Toshniwal, co-founder of The Pant Project, stated that the newly acquired funds will be allocated towards offline retail expansion, branding and marketing, technology development, and team growth. Currently, the digital-native brand operates three physical stores—two in Mumbai and one in Bengaluru—with plans to open 25 to 30 more stores nationwide over the next three years.
“Today, a large part of our revenues, i.e., 65%, come from our own direct-to-consumer (D2C) website,” Toshniwal told ET. To date, the brand has catered to over 100,000 customers through its website.
Founded in 2020 by Dhruv and Udit Toshniwal, third-generation members of the Banswara Syntex family, The Pant Project initially launched with men’s pants and later expanded to include women’s pants. The brand now offers over 250 styles, including formal pants, chinos, jeans, cargos, joggers, power stretch knit pants, luxury linens, and wool pants. Banswara Syntex is a Rajasthan-based listed manufacturer and trader of textile goods.
“We’ve managed to grow to about Rs 31 crore in revenue last financial year as a bootstrapped company,” Toshniwal said, aiming to cross Rs 100 crore in revenue within the next 18-24 months.
The company’s revenue mix is robust, with about 60% coming from top-tier cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, and Ahmedabad, and the remaining 40% from tier II cities. “We are looking to open exclusive brand outlets (EBOs) in all major cities where we have a large customer presence,” Toshniwal added.
Mandar Dandekar, partner at Sorin Investments, remarked, “The Pant Project has created a strong brand recall as a destination for bottom wear for all occasions, demonstrated by deep customer love and repeat behavior. We are excited to partner with Dhruv and Udit, who have an in-depth understanding of men’s fashion and the associated supply chain, coupled with a DNA for product innovation which is visible through their high-performance fabrics providing better fit and comfort.”
The fashion startup space has been active with funding rounds in recent months. In May, men’s apparel brand Rare Rabbit closed its maiden institutional funding round of Rs 500 crore led by A91 Partners. In April, former Zomato executive Mohit Gupta and Myntra founder Mukesh Bansal raised $26 million for their omnichannel fashion startup Lyskraft, led by Peak XV Partners. In March, direct-to-consumer apparel firm Bummer raised Rs 9.25 crore in a round led by Nikhil Kamath-backed Gruhas’ Collective Consumer Fund.
