ET Startup Awards 2026: Nominees for Bootstrap Champ

The Economic Times Startup Awards is back for its 12th edition. Ahead of the main event, here are the nominees in one of the eight categories: Bootstrap Champ.

The Bootstrap Champ will have demonstrated the ability to win customers and earn revenue for at least a year. It should possess the potential to scale into a large enterprise.

Here are the nominees:

Company Name: Suta

ETtech

Founders: Sujata Biswas (left), Taniya Biswas

Founded In: 2016

Based In: Mumbai

What it does: Suta is a direct-to-consumer brand that sells women’s fashion products such as saris, blouses and accessories. The firm runs 23 stores across Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad, among other cities. It also sells on marketplaces like Myntra and Ajio.

Company Name: Habuild

ETtech

Founders: (L-R) Saurabh Bothra, Trishala Bothra, Anshul Agrawal

Founded In: 2020

Based In: Nagpur

What it does: Habuild provides daily online yoga classes and has over 3.5 million subscribers on YouTube. It focuses on long-term habit formation of its users through daily live sessions rather than pre-recorded content.

Company Name: Urban Vault

ETtech

Founders: Piyush Kumar (left) and Amal Mishra

Founded In: 2018

Based In: Bengaluru

What it does: Urban Vault leases office spaces and converts them into managed workspaces. It then subleases customised office solutions to enterprises and startups, managing design, setup, and daily operations so clients can focus on their core business.

Company Name: Melento

ETtech

Founders: Krupesh Bhat (left), Ashok Kadsur

Founded In: 2016

Based In: Bengaluru

What it does: Melento, formally known as SignDesk, provides a subscription-based SaaS platform for document automation, compliance, and workflow management. It has expanded into AI-powered compliance and banking workflows for financial institutions and has over 3,000 clients.

Company Name: D’You

ETtech

Founders: Shamika Haldipurkar

Founded In: 2020

Based In: Mumbai

What it does: D’You develops premium, science-backed skincare products formulated in South Korea, Japan, and Italy. The brand follows a focussed product strategy, launching only one product a year. Its products are sold through its D2C website as well as ecommerce and quick commerce platforms.