Bhavisha Dave and Meenakshi Singh met when they worked together at PUMA India. During their time there, they bonded over their mutual love for streetwear and constantly joked about starting something of their own. The jokes turned into talks, the talks turned into discussions, the discussions turned into execution and the execution resulted in the birth of CAPSUL — India’s most diverse webstore for streetwear. Dave was exposed to streetwear and all of its components from an early age. “Growing up, I was influenced a lot by streetwear culture as I was a speed skater. I loved watching the X-Games and the NBA. I was also a huge hip-hop fan, so it feels like life has come a full circle considering that I’ve been lucky enough to be able to start my own business based on this culture.”
Singh, on the other hand, was introduced to the culture as her career steamrolled ahead. “I spent four years as the creative head at PUMA India followed by a three year stint as the commercial marketing manager for the EEMEA regional team. In the process, I was getting exposed to not just European street culture but also emerging progressive cultures in Africa, Middle East as well as India.” The journey getting to this point was far from easy. They had to divert most of their money to bootstrap the business, and put in countless hours into research, meetings, and convincing the big names of streetwear to trust them and send them their products. Once they ticked that out, they assembled a loyal and committed team full of individuals who would have their backs.
The website first started out at the end of 2017 with just a handful of brands. It quickly caught on and word spread that there was an Indian website where you can purchase streetwear products that were never available in the country. As they grew more popular, they naturally expanded their business and more streetwear brands appeared on the website. But Dave and Singh had bigger plans. Their vision for CAPSUL was more than just a website to shop from, they wanted to make it a movement and an entity that garners its own loyal community. They wanted to use the growing momentum of streetwear in India, to educate more and propagate streetwear around the country. That is when they started ‘WORD on the Street,’ which aims to provide a platform for India’s street culture community and brings together tribes representing streetwear, sneakers, art, and music.
The timing of CAPSUL’s origin was impeccable. It came at a time when there was a void for streetwear in the country but there was a small, budding culture that was on the cusp of exploding. “Streetwear is an attitude, it’s the fashion expression of street culture. An almost universal sense of style among Gen Z and millennials, the proliferation of Instagram and the gradual acceptance of comfortable, functional clothing, including tees, hoodies and cargos, as work wear have catalysed the streetwear movement,” says Dave. Singh adds, “Streetwear has opened the doors for men to participate in the conversation about fashion, and it is not bound by seasons. All these factors together make for a long cycle we’re seeing for streetwear.”
Dave and Singh have big plans for CAPSUL. This year, they are ready to add three new brands to their already impressive roster, conduct more ‘WORD on the Street’ events, host digital popups with Indian streetwear labels, and drop their very own collection. And another thing they plan to do this year, is clearly, not slow down.
