Early-stage Firms PlayBlue, Tulon Materials, CUNIN Raise Funds

PlayBlue, an omnichannel multi-brand sports retail platform, has raised USD 2.7 million in seed funding round, co-led by Court Capital and MIXI Global with participation from WEH Ventures.

Founded by sports industry veteran Satyam Trivedi and serial entrepreneur Jayam Vora, PlayBlue brings more than 100 global and homegrown brands across athleisure, footwear, equipment and nutrition into curated experiential stores, backed by a single digital platform with expert buying guidance, unified inventory and quick delivery.

Over the next five years, the company plans a network of over 150 stores, a community of more than 10 million users and annual revenue above INR 5,000 crore.

The rollout begins with a 15,000 sq. ft. flagship in Bengaluru, followed by destination stores in landmark high streets and premium malls in Mumbai and Delhi NCR. The ecommerce platform will deliver nationwide from day one of the launch.

The seed funding will help the company launch flagship stores and its pan-India e-commerce platform with a target of INR 100 crore in revenue and profitability in its first phase before the next fund raise, aiming for operational profitability.

Tulon Materials

Tulon Materials, which focuses on R&D-led engineering high-performance, sustainable specialty chemicals has raised INR 10 crore in a seed funding round led by Karthik Sundar Iyer with participation from Karan Goshar and Prakhar Pandey (Partners at Valour Capital a venture fund investing in defence, aerospace, deep tech and advanced manufacturing, participating in their personal capacities) with additional backing from angel investor Agam Shah.

Led by founders Asesh Sarkar, Dr. Rabindranath Mandal and Harsh Bhatt, the company plans to use the seed funding to accelerate engineering and commercialization timelines for applications in paints & coatings, printing inks and adhesives.

CUNIN

CUNIN, a culture-led lifestyle brand, has raised USD 450,000 in a pre-seed funding round led by ALL IN Capital and Huddle Ventures.

Founded by former NEWME executives Kunal Shukla, Amish Bihu and Afsal, CUNIN will first roll out the Fragrance and Carryable Perfume Accessories category. It will also use the capital to accelerate product development, strengthen the team, invest in brand building and expand offline.

“CUNIN is built as a global cultural IP designed to resonate far beyond India. We are creating for a generation that values self-expression over conformity, where design, language and everyday objects become powerful tools of self-expression. Our vision is not simply to build products people consume, but to create symbols, stories and experiences people emotionally connect with and proudly identify with.

As a brand, we stand for the opposite. The world constantly tells you to be perfect, mature and fit into the mold. We tell people to stay IM Perfect. Stay IM Mature. In many ways, CUNIN represents that one friend your parents warned you about the notorious, misunderstood misfit who, in reality is the only one standing by you when it matters most,” Shukla said in a statement.