Culture Circle

Culture Circle is a Gurugram-headquartered marketplace for authenticated sneakers, streetwear and luxury fashion, owned and operated by Metacircles Technologies Private Limited. The platform lets buyers compare prices across a network of verified resellers and global marketplaces in real time and purchase items that are authenticated before delivery. The assortment spans sneakers, streetwear, watches, bags and accessories from brands including Nike, Air Jordan, Yeezy, Adidas, Dior and Louis Vuitton, with the company describing an assortment of around 3 million hype and luxury products; earlier coverage cited roughly 2.5 million active listings drawn from more than 240 websites.

Authentication is central to the proposition. Culture Circle uses SourceX, its proprietary aggregation and AI-based authentication engine, alongside a partnership with sneaker authentication provider CheckCheck. Items pass a five-step verification process covering physical inspection of materials and construction, brand-specific checkpoints, packaging and accessories checks, a legit check report, and tagging and sealing with end-to-end tracking. Sellers undergo background checks and KYC compliance, and the company positions itself as the first luxury marketplace in India to offer dual authentication certification.

Alongside the app and website, Culture Circle operates Broadway retail stores in New Delhi (Ambience Mall, Vasant Kunj), Hyderabad (Banjara Hills), Pune (Kopa Mall) and Mumbai, with further locations planned in Gurgaon, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Consumer-facing features include CC Now same-day delivery by 9 PM on eligible products in select cities, the Culture Cash rewards programme, Culture Drops limited collections, a 10-day Buyer Promise and a 6-hour money-back price guarantee.

Founding story

Culture Circle was founded in 2023 by Devansh Jain Nawal and Ackshay Jain, childhood friends of some 14 years, after both found it difficult to buy rare sneakers and luxury items in India without risking counterfeits; Ackshay Jain has described limited options, inflated prices and no authenticity guarantee for his UK size 11 shoes. They saw an Indian luxury resale market characterised by unverified products, unreliable sellers and informal WhatsApp transactions, and set out to build a technology-driven authenticated marketplace. Devansh Jain Nawal is described as ex-Goldman Sachs and an IIM Ahmedabad alumnus, while Ackshay Jain is described as ex-Google and a leader within JITO's Gurugram vertical; the pair had previously co-founded The Healthy Company. The idea started as a weekend project at a Goa hackathon that drew more than 30,000 organic users, leading to the formal launch in September 2023.

Business model

Culture Circle runs an online marketplace and app that aggregates listings from a network of KYC-verified resellers and global marketplaces, comparing prices in real time so buyers can order authenticated items at the lowest available price. It authenticates goods before delivery, issues an authenticity certificate and legit check report with each order, and supplements the online channel with company-operated physical stores. Sellers are charged commissions that range from roughly 6% to 30% depending on category, with sneakers at about 9-10% and apparel at about 10-12%.

Revenue comes from commissions charged to sellers, ranging from about 6% to 30% of the sale depending on category, with sneakers around 9-10% and apparel around 10-12%. Around 94% of revenue was reported to come from online sales and 6% from offline stores, with average order values of roughly ₹18,000-₹20,000 and higher-ticket categories such as bags and watches lifting the average.

Traction

Reported traction includes more than 1 million monthly users and over 4,000 KYC-verified sellers as of mid-2025, roughly 3 million products in the assortment, about 500,000 app downloads and more than 50,000 customers served as of early 2025. Financially, gross sales of ₹22.2 crore and revenue of ₹2.5 crore were reported for April-November 2024, with FY25 revenue of ₹3.8 crore, an increase of about 801% over FY24's ₹42.4 lakh. The company reported 4x business growth ahead of its July 2025 raise and monthly web traffic of about 3.55 million.

Latest developments

In July 2025 Culture Circle announced strategic funding from OYO founder Ritesh Agarwal at a valuation exceeding ₹100 crore, with proceeds earmarked for scaling the SourceX authentication engine, adding product categories and international expansion; the company claimed to have surpassed a ₹400 crore valuation and 4x business growth at that time. It also announced dual authentication certification with CheckCheck and continued offline expansion, including planned stores in Gurgaon, Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Data provider Inc42 lists FY25 revenue of ₹3.8 crore, up about 801% year on year, total funding of $2 million or more across two rounds with the last round dated July 2025, and an employee count of 89.