Chappers is a footwear brand that revolutionised traditional Kolhapuri chappals by blending craftsmanship with modern design. Founded by Harshwardhan Patwardhan in 2014, the brand offers personalised footwear including Belgian loafers, Mojris, and more through innovative techniques like AI and AR.
Brand History
Chappers’ journey began in 2014 when its Founder, Harshwardhan, started the business at 24 with a working capital of around 5 lakh rupees. Initially collaborating with artisans in Kolhapur, he aimed to modernise the traditional Kolhapuri chappals, known for their durability but limited in design and color, appealing mainly to men in Maharashtra. Chappers innovatively combined the quality of Kolhapuris with loafers, creating stylish and customisable footwear.
Innovation & Technology
Chappers has established a unique brand identity with its technology-driven 100% customisation service. Unlike any other brand in the Indian footwear market, Chappers offers customers advanced AR technology to design their shoes. In Chappers stores, customers encounter a large touch-screen display with thousands of chappal and shoe designs. A click activates Chappers’ proprietary AR-powered software, presenting over 10,000 design possibilities, including materials, accessories, and colours. Chappers allows customers to personalise their footwear with accessories or initials. Customers can visualise the product using AR tools through India’s first 4K virtual customisation. If satisfied, they place the order, and within 3 to 4 working days, handcrafted footwear is delivered to their doorstep.
Products Offerings
Chappers offers an extensive range of products including unique Kolhapuri chappals, Belgian loafers, Rajasthani Mojris, Peshawari Sandals, Mules, and more. They have recently expanded their offerings to include a select range of women’s collections.
Product Development
Chappers conducts extensive and regular market research about footwear trends. The whole process of designing is digitally driven at Chappers. They have curated a repository of over 10,000 design combinations that are offered to their customers. Unlike the conventional approach of stocking large numbers of ready-made pairs, Chappers enables customers to choose their footwear design and materials.
The brand sources all its raw materials from suppliers who deploy ethical processes and offer high-quality raw materials. Stringent quality checks are in place to ensure consistency of material quality for each manufactured product.
Market Presence
Chappers operates four exclusive stores in Maharashtra and collaborates with 20 additional retail locations. Their e-commerce portal provides delivery across India and internationally. The brand employs a hybrid model that integrates physical stores with its online platform.
Target Audience and Engagement
Chappers’ primary target audience consists of 18 to 40-year-old men. The brand engages with them through social media and in-store interactions, ensuring their designs and vision match their preferences. To build brand loyalty, the brand offers regular discounts to frequent customers and provides free services such as repairs, polishing, priority delivery, and priority order placements for custom designs.
Strategic Expansion
Chappers plans to expand its national presence over the next five years through a combination of company-owned stores, franchises, and a robust distribution network. Currently, the brand operates five exclusive stores in Maharashtra but aims to establish outlets nationwide. Franchise options will include kiosks in shopping malls and store-in-store setups within large multi-brand retail outlets. Recently, Chappers introduced a range of women’s footwear and plans to significantly expand this collection next year. In response to growing demand, the brand also plans to enter the kids’ segment. Furthermore, Chappers is focused on offering a diverse selection of Indian ethnic footwear from various states of India. To support this growth, the brand plans to expand its team of professionals and craftsmen.
Financial Growth
Chappers anticipates closing the year with revenue nearing 4 crores with a projected revenue of 6 and 9 crore for the next two years. Being a bootstrapped company, Chappers prides itself on its organic growth and plans to sustain a steady growth rate of 30-40% annually while prioritising profitability.
