MS Dhoni has acquired a stake in IPO-bound jewellery maker Bluestone, while venture fund Peak XV Partners is set to back star batsman Sachin Tendulkar’s sports shoe startup, said people briefed on the matter. According to filings, former cricketer Yuvraj Singh has taken a stake in sports athleisure firm Agilitas Sports, founded by Abhishek Ganguly, who was managing director of Puma India.
“From focusing on endorsement deals, athletes are now taking greater interest in equity deals, as well as deeper roles in company operations – especially for the ones who have retired from international cricket but built a large brand value,” said one person aware of the deals. “This is becoming a much bigger area of interest–similar to global celebrity deals.”
On August 14, ET first reported about Tendulkar’s collaboration with former Swiggy Instamart head Karthik Gurumurthy for launching his athleisure brand.
ETtechCeleb cricketers are also incubating new consumer businesses that are expected to emerge in the coming months, those familiar with the matter said.
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Dhoni, among the earliest celebrities to back startups, has invested in a range of businesses, including drone startup Garuda Aerospace, Bengaluru-based fitness startup Tagda Raho, used car platform Cars24, and digital lending platform Khatabook, among others.
Singh, who formed his own investment company YouWeCan Ventures in 2015, has invested in EazyDiner, Wellversed and Healthians, among others.
Queries sent to the mentioned firms did not elicit responses by press time on Saturday.
Mix of branding and business
This rising tide of startup investments is not limited to former cricketers; current players too are active in the space. For instance, Hardik Pandya, captain for IPL franchise Mumbai Indians, recently launched his own performance wear brand. He joins peers such as Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who are among the most active investors in the business ecosystem.
Industry experts are of the view that consumers’ expectations of celebrities are also changing, as the larger ecosystem evolves.
Kohli holds a stake in Universal Sportsbiz, which runs the brand Wrogn, and has a close collaboration with Puma for the One8 range of shoes and other products. This, along with Tendulkar’s SRT 10 Athleisure and Agilitas garnering strong investor interest, underscores the growing demand for sports goods and health and fitness products in the country.
Sharma, who currently captains the Indian cricket team, has partnered with healthy snacks maker True Elements to create a licenced brand ‘RS by True Elements,’ to co-develop a product line focused on the Indian cuisine market. Sharma is also an investor in the education technology startup Leo1.
Other cricketers such as Sourav Ganguly, Ajinkya Rahane, Gautam Gambhir, Shikhar Dhawan, and KL Rahul have also signed multiple partnership deals and are launching new businesses.