Exclusive: Soxytoes raises angel round to disrupt the branded socks market

Karma Holdings, a Noida based startup that owns omnichannel socks brand Soxytoes, has raised an undisclosed sum in an angel funding round from a group of individuals including Sorabh Agarwal, former senior managing director of Copal Amba; Hemant Dua, former CEO of Delhi Daredevils; and Vikas Bagaria, founder of Pee Safe, a top company official told TechCircle.

The startup will use the capital for digital marketing, expansion of its kiosk network, expansion into international markets and the launch of new product lines such as personalized and kids socks.

Soxytoes was founded by Vidushi Kajaria and Aayush Goenka in 2018. The brand’s current product range includes noticeable socks, performance enhancing athletic socks, health socks for diabetics, no-show socks and socks especially engineered for travel. 

The pure cotton-based product line also includes socks infused with natural essential oils, enabled by microencapsulation technology. Besides fragrances such as lime, green apple, and fragrant sandalwood, the brand offers infusions of cooling and energizing mint oils and aloe vera to help soften and moisturize the feet, the company claims.

“While innovation has in some way or the other tweaked our clothes and accessories, socks have remained neglected. Soxytoes addressed this space and our ‘noticeable’ socks are transformational, and an orbit-shifting innovation,” Kanoria said.

Soxytoes sells its products via its website, all major ecommerce marketplaces such as Myntra and Amazon and through offline channels such as kiosks in shopping malls and pop-up stores at events such as The Lil Flea and Comic Con. It claims to have sold over one lakh pairs since inception.

“Soxytoes has a disruptive product line and addresses an area which is largely neglected. From youngsters to people with ailments such as diabetes, a very simple thing like a pair of socks can have a lasting impact,” angel investor Sorabh Agarwal said.

After the initial boom and upsurge of investor activity, vertical fashion ecommerce went into a slumber and has never really regained momentum. Subsequently, most standalone brands moved offline in search of better brand recall and revenues, and relied on online marketplaces for cost reduction. 

This omni-channel strategy has worked for many and has resulted in the emergence of many online-first fashion and FMCG brands.

While the socks market has a multitude of brands both offline and online, there isn’t a clear leader in this segment yet. A number of startups, across the globe, are trying to disrupt this market with the promise of durability and innovative design. The opportunity was successfully identified by Stance, a US-based direct-to-consumer retailer selling socks and clothing basics, which went on to raise over $100 million in venture capital funding. 

In India, Soxytoes is not the only new-age socks brand. A slew of brands including Bombay Socks, Sock Soho, The Moja Club, SocksBakery and Sock Republic are trying to establish a solid market in the socks industry with an online and offline play.