Top 30 Quirky Online Brands To Watch Out For In 2017!

This blog post first appeared on the Zepo Blog.

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We Indians love to shop online. From fruits to fashion, we have shown the willingness to purchase almost everything off the internet for the love of convenience. An IAMAI study recently pegged the Indian E-Commerce industry at a value of Rs. 2,11,005 crores in 2016, which nearly doubled from 2015. India’s online retail grew at a rate of 57 percent from 2014, and there seems to be no signs of an apparent slowdown in 2017.

Surprisingly, a major chunk of growth has come from non-conventional, indie, quirky online brands who have impressed consumers with their unique products, attention to detail and exceptional quality. Indian consumers have also evolved with an expanded world view and a propensity to not just acquire a product, but an experience.

We have listed 30 such quirky online brands that are all set to impress the new-age discerning Indian consumers and their idiosyncratic needs.

Are any of your favorite brands listed here? Go ahead and find out.

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• Ustraa

Website: https://www.happilyunmarried.com/ustraa/

The parent brand behind Ustraa is Happily Unmarried, an already established name founded by Rajat Tuli and Rahul Anand. In 2015, they decided to launch Ustraa with a very unique product portfolio.

Their pin-point focus on men’s beard grooming products have helped Ustraa carve a niche for themselves in the market early on.

Their social media advertising is very engaging and speaks volumes about the brand’s acute understanding of their target audience.

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• Bombay Shirt Company

Website: https://www.bombayshirts.com/

Founded by Akshay Narvekar and a fellow ISB grad, Bombay Shirt Company claims to be India’s 1st online custom shirt brand providing high quality, but affordable shirts to their customers. Their products are manufactured in-house in their factory in Parel, with close attention being paid to every step in the creation process to ensure 0 compromises in quality.

Their USP? Customers can choose the combination of fabrics, cuffs, collars, buttons and more to create a completely unique, custom shirt reflecting their own style ethos.

The brand has recently secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Amit and Arihant Patni, scions of the Patni computers founder.

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• Bombay Shaving Company

Website: https://www.bombayshavingcompany.com/our-story/

2015 saw the creation of men’s shaving brand, Bombay Shaving Company. Founded by Shantanu Deshpande, Deepu Panicker and Raunak Munot, the brand’s USP is a 6-part shaving kit with each element being engineered to perfection to guarantee a perfect shaving experience.

What all is included in this shaving kit? A six-set razor, brush, pre-shave scrub, shaving cream, post-shave balm and blades.

Their stylish razors are the most sought after products of the brand, and they have plans to ultimately induct over 100 product SKU’s in the future. This one is for all the gentlemen out there. You can’t afford to give Bombay Shaving Company a miss.

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• FreshMenu

Website: https://freshmenu.com/

Back in 2014, there was a lot of buzz around foodtech startups that were seemingly sprouting up everywhere in India. Founder Rashmi Daga believed that India was poised for a revolution in the online food-ordering segment, and pinned her hopes on FreshMenu.

Their USP lies in creating a unique menu everyday, delivering world cuisine prepared with the freshest, finest ingredients to customers in less than 45 minutes.

Recently, the company raised around 17 million $, and wants to become an Indian foodtech powerhouse in the future.

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• Nicobar

Website: https://www.nicobar.com/

Fashion & Lifestyle brand Good Earth has been charming people with their sustainable and organic products since 1996. Founders Simran Lal and Raul Rai have brought out their latest creation, a minimalist fashion label in the form of Nicobar. The product range covers three segments, namely home, travel and fashion.

The clothing line claims to offer high-end luxe clothing at surprisingly affordable prices, and reflects a unique sense of style and design in their clothes.

They also have an experience store in Kala Ghoda, Fort which offers the full Nicobar experience to discerning customers.

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• Bhane

Website: https://www.bhane.com/

Bhane founder Anand Ahuja believes in bringing everyday fashion to the masses. His products reflect his style sense closely, which has made his brand quite popular among youth and celebrities in India.

The experience that he gained from living and working for top fashion brands in the US came in handy while designing his clothing range. They also have a retail store in Meherchand Market in New Delhi apart from their e-store.

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• Andamen

Website: https://www.andamen.com/

Founder Siddharth Suri decided to leave his MNC job in the US in order to fill a gaping fashion void of cool shirts in India. Thus, Andamen was started with an aim to make embroidered shirts a part of every fashion conscious Indian man’s wardrobe. They only make shirts with Egyptian Giza cotton, the finest cotton fabric known to man.

Their shirts might be considered works of art, with their gold stringed shirt taking over 6 days to make with over 2 lakh stitches.

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• Why So Serious

Website: https://www.whysoserious.co.in/

Founded by Khushboo Bisht, the web store’s products are quintessentially quirky. The website has an absolutely massive collection of products in a huge range of product categories.

Whether you need interesting bar accessories, or you require funky stationery products, the site has you covered.

Boring is certainly not a word that I would use to describe their web store.

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• Tjori

Website: https://www.tjori.com/

During her studies in Wharton, Tjori founder Mansi Gupta stumbled upon a huge demand of indian handicrafts in USA. She decided to capitalize on the same, and thus Tjori was born.

The products are sourced from all over India, and possess the hallmark of authenticity and unparalleled design aesthetics.Now, Tjori sells its unique, hand-crafted products to the Indian market as well. Their product category ranges from Apparel & Jewelry to Footwear and Home Furnishings.

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• Quirksmith

Website: https://quirksmith.com/

Quirksmith is the brainchild of 2 sisters, Divya & Pragya Batra who are on a mission to popularize sterling silver jewelry with their intricate line of earrings, necklaces and other intricate ornaments.

Their contemporary designs allude an other-worldly charm which is very endearing and attractive.

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• Khara Kapas

Website: https://kharakapas.com/

Founder Shilpi Yadav’s fashion brand aims to popularize old school Indian craftsmanship and textiles in this day and age.

She works with several small artisans and weavers throughout the country to source her unique and authentic Indian designs.

The name Khara Kapas literally translates into “pure cotton”, and that is exactly what the clothes are made out of.

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• Itokri

Website: https://www.itokri.com/

Nitin Pamnani along with his wife founded iTokri, an online store that sells innovative and designer handicrafts, jewellery, clothing, art etc. that are quintessentially Indian in terms of the artistry and the look and feel.

This Gwalior based online store has been around for quite some time, but their vast product categories are constantly updated with new stuff regularly.

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• The Moja Club

Website: https://www.themojaclub.in/

Let The Moja Club revamp your wardrobe with their super cool socks so that you never wear boring socks ever again.

Founder Joey Saha has created a truly quirky brand that sells funky socks to a young, self-actualized clientele in India who are hungry to express their individuality and explore something new.

You can shop for a pair, or go for a subscription plan. It’s never too late to start a sock collection!

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• The Postbox

Website: https://www.thepostbox.in/

This here is an E-Commerce platform that features a very distinct product category which has been created by various designers and graphic artists.

Founders Nikhil Joseph and Madhuvanthi got together to create a brand that was unique, had great character and was visually stunning and unique.

The Postbox is currently offering products across 4 product categories, namely: Home Decor, Stationery, Lifestyle & Lighting.

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• Letter Note

Website: https://www.letternote.in/

Letternote is a product design brand that merges the minimalist ethos with pop art and visually stunning graphics to create eclectic products. Founder Anisha Singh is an art and design fanatic, and that reflects in her uber cool product portfolio.

Whether it is a wall clock or metallic bookmarks, the uniqueness is unabashed and that’s what makes this brand very interesting.

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• Kulture Shop

Website: https://www.kultureshop.in/

Founder Jas Charanjiva has poured in all of her artistic influences in her venture, the Kulture Shop to create a platform that houses top art and design talent from India.

Their products reflect the uber cool, kitschy art that you would normally find on the graffiti laden walls of a skate-park.

Art is finding a new found appreciation in the country, and this will certainly be a brand to watch out for in 2017.

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• Play Clan

Website: https://www.theplayclan.com/

Founder Himanshu Dogra is a NIFT alumnus, and design is at the core of his being.

Their products have hand-drawn art and they employ quality artisans to create the stunning graphics that has become a PlayClan trademark.

They have collaborated with top brands like Levi’s, Absolut & Adidas Paul Smith in the past, and are no strangers to success. Apart from their online store, they have 10 offline retail stores in the country, including one in Bali too. Check them out!

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• Rubberband

Website: https://www.rubberbandproducts.com/

The brainchild of Mumbai based industrial designer Ajay Shah, Rubberband embodies the philosophy of good design and that is visible through their eclectic mix of products. From quirky furniture to artsy designer stationery, they are all unique having their own character with fascinating artwork.

Their collection includes paper based notebooks, journals, planners, memo pads, dockets, writing pens, and desktop products.

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• Buttercups

Website: https://buttercups.in/

This brand took the lingerie scene by storm in India with their premium product offerings comprising of carefully curated top international brands. Founder Arpita Ganesh knows a thing or two about lingerie having provided consultation to major brands like Marks & Spencer about the same.

She is aspiring to make Buttercups India’s primary destination for premium lingerie with services that include customized styling, fitting and consultations.

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• Nykaa

Website: https://www.nykaa.com/

Having served as the MD of Kotak Mahindra Capital, Founder/CEO Falguni Nayar knows how to run a business well.

After serving 19 years in Finance, she decided to dive headfirst into the Online Fashion industry and started Nykaa, an E-Commerce portal that sells beauty and wellness products. They recently secured a large round of funding from investors, and are looking to advertise aggressively this year to continue their digital dominance in beauty.

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• The Label Life

Website: https://www.thelabellife.com/

When you have celebrities like Malaika Arora, Suzanne Khan & Bipasha Basu designing for your brand, then you just know that your brand is all set to fly.

Their signature collection of Home Decor, Apparel & Fashion Accessories are quite impressive, as you will find out yourself. Featuring products styled by celebrities having an impeccable sense of style themselves, their products are very chic and high quality.

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• Fly Robe

Website: https://flyrobe.com/

Fly Robe’s website boldly proclaims, “Own Everything. Buy Nothing”. That, is where the company’s USP lies.

They provide clothes from top fashion brands on rent.

The founders Shreya Mishra, Pranay Surana and Tushar Saxena are all IIT Mumbai alumni who have been successful in raising funding multiple times so far. The industry is still growing, and they have massive scope to grow still.

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• Bombay Trooper

Website: https://bombaytrooper.com/

From their funky printed t-shirts to their interactive and highly engaging website, Bombay Trooper understand their audience well.

Boasting of having India’s largest t-shirt collection, this is the go to place for t-shirt lovers.

Their in-house production facility churns out high-quality laser printed t-shirts for their discerning customer base. Go check em out!

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• March Tee

Website: https://www.marchtee.com/

The team behind design studio Studio March simply weren’t satisfied with the t-shirt offerings in India in terms of the quality and comfort. Thus, they took up matters in their own hands and ended up creating March Tee.

They use the best quality cotton and stitching techniques to create a high quality t-shirt that looks and feels good.

Want an exquisite, high-quality t-shirt? Check them out.

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• Souled Store

Website: https://www.thesouledstore.com/

Disenchanted with corporate life, founders Rohin Samtaney, Aditya Sharma & Vedang Patel decided to quit their jobs to start their own Online Marketplace called the Souled Store.

Right now, they sell everything from t-shirts to mobile covers with artwork that embodies pop-culture, cult elements etc. that have a massive following among people everywhere.

They have collaborated with top music festivals, stand up acts etc. and count themselves among some of the few brands that are official merchandise partners for big budget films (Harry Potter) in India.

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• Love this Stuff

Website: https://lovethisstuff.com/

Founder Vatsala Kothari previously worked in a couple of startups for 6 years before starting Love this Stuff.

They like to describe themselves as a “24X7 online exhibition” featuring creative and exciting products made by designers and craftsmen from all over the country.

There is a wide variety of quirky products to choose from, and they will appeal to a wide variety of people having varied likes/dislikes.

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• Woodgeek

Website: https://www.woodgeekstore.com/

Founder Saikat Saha was associated with timber since an early age owing to his family’s plywood business. The idea for Woodgeek germinated when he tried to create a wooden notebook for a corporate client.

Now, you can find not just notebooks, but pens, sunglasses, mobile phone cases etc. made out of high quality wood with the most exquisite craftsmanship that is visible outright.

Love wood? This is the place to be for you.

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• Nonasties

Website: https://www.nonasties.in/

Nonasties is not just a regular fashion label, but it embraces the nouveau philosophy of Ethical Fashion.

They ensure fair trade practices and an eco-friendly production process, including the raw materials that are sourced from farmers after paying regulated prices.

Their designer community creates theme based clothing, and the buyer has the satisfaction of buying an organic and unique piece of clothing.

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• Paintcollar

Website: https://paintcollar.com/

Paintcollar is looking to change the way people shop online for apparel and clothing.

It is an online marketplace that brings products featuring art from top designers and independent artists on everyday items, apparel and accessories.

The platform’s USP lies in the fact that artists can list themselves and their products, and sell directly to customers via Paintcollar’s webstore.

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• Unfactory

Website: https://unfactory.in/

As the name suggests, Unfactory is about things that haven’t come out from a factory’s assembly line.

Founded by a collective of indie art enthusiasts, Unfactory has purely handcrafted products that you would be hard pressed to find on any other webstore of retail outlet.

It is the depiction of art and creative freedom on goods for daily use, apparel and plenty of product categories.

For all of those individuals who crave individuality, Unfactory has something that caters to everyone’s idiosyncrasies.

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This is not a definitive list of quirky online brands most certainly, and we are merely stating our opinion. We would love to hear your thoughts about this list. Happen to know a brand that deserves a mention here? Kindly let us know in the comments below. Also, we would like to mention the fact that we don’t have any business association with the brands on the list.

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