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Tauseef Mirza, managing director of Mirza International, has acquired a 100% stake in casual footwear startup Solethreads, marking a strategic move into India’s growing semi-premium footwear segment. The acquisition is expected to combine Solethreads’ digital-first, youth-oriented brand identity with Mirza International’s established manufacturing and design capabilities.
Founded in 2020 by Sumant Kakaria, Gaurav Chopra, Vikram Iyer and Aprajit Kathuria, Solethreads focuses on open and casual footwear, including sneakers, slides, and flip-flops. The Gurugram-based company has built its presence across both online and offline channels in a relatively short time.
Solethreads has raised over USD 7 million in funding so far. In July 2023, it secured USD 3.7 million in a Series A round led by Fireside Ventures, along with participation from DSG Consumer Partners, Saama Capital, and several angel investors. Earlier, it had raised about USD 3.5 million from DSG Consumer Partners and Saama Capital.
Following the acquisition, the company plans to strengthen domestic manufacturing, improve product development and expand its offline footprint through exclusive brand outlets. The brand has already shown steady growth, reaching a monthly run rate of INR 6 crore within four years. By 2025, it had expanded to 600 multi-brand outlets and launched 8 exclusive brand outlets.
“At scale, we needed a long-term solution for in-house design and domestic production capabilities. As the founding team moves on, I am confident Mr. Mirza and his team will take the brand to new heights,” said Sumant Kakaria, CEO of Solethreads.
Mirza highlighted the strategic fit of the acquisition, stating, “Over past couple of years, we’ve dabbled in building up few brands from scratch, like Thomas Crick and Off The Hook and got reasonable success as well. But I want to build a large semi-premium brand in the casual footwear space, for which Solethreads is at the perfect stage.”
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