Indian cricketer Jasprit Bumrah has donated an undisclosed sum to the direct-to-consumer luggage company Uppercase. Since the beginning, Bumrah has served as the company’s brand ambassador.
Accel Partners led a $9 million Series A funding round that the Mumbai-based company recently secured.
Together with Bumrah, the company will develop a new line of products that will primarily cater to athletes and include gym bags, backpacks, and luggage. According to a press release from Uppercase, Bumrah will receive a share of the sales of these products.
“It’s the way Uppercase has built something meaningful in a space that’s very cluttered. Their focus on sustainable materials, functionality, and design, and the fact that they’re doing it all out of India — was really impressive. Whether it’s long tours or short trips, I know the small things that make a big difference in a bag. I want the design to be clean, functional, and genuinely useful —especially for people who travel often, like athletes or professionals,” said Jasprit Bumrah.
Australian cricketer Glenn Maxwell donated an undisclosed sum to Drive FITT, a membership-based sports club centered around cricket, fitness, and recuperation using state-of-the-art technology, just three days ago.
Founded and run by Acefour Accessories, Uppercase’s operating income increased from Rs 10.7 crore in FY23 to Rs 62.2 crore in FY24.
Some direct-to-consumer (D2C) luggage brands compete with Uppercase; many of these companies have raised a substantial amount of money in the last 12 months. Peak XV led a Series B funding round in which Mokobara raised $12 million. Prath Capital led Assembly in securing $2 million in funding, and Nasher Miles raised $4 million in a bridge round. In a seed round, EUME was also successful in raising money.
A growing number of cricket players, such as Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, MS Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, and Ajinkya Rahane, have been actively investigating the startup ecosystem in recent years, either by starting their own businesses or investing in equity.
