Walmart owned Flipkart has made a strategic investment in Universal Sportsbiz (USPL), a fashion retailer that backs brands such as Wrogn, Ms Taken and Imara. The capital raise comes as a part of USPL’s Series F round of funding which also saw participation from existing investors Accel Partners.

The Flipkart Group has been focused on strengthening its presence in the Indian fashion retail industry and this is the company’s third major investment in an offline fashion retailer in 2020.

The company had invested INR 1,500 crore in Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail to pick a 7.8 percent stake and INR 260 crore in Arvind Youth Brands earlier this year. The current deal will help The Flipkart Group build on USPL’s onmichannel offering to widen its product portfolio. USPL has presence in over 750 offline stores across 100 Indian cities.

“It is our constant endeavour to offer our customers a wide range of products that meet their sensibilities. USPL’s unique brands, backed by celebrity endorsements, have a strong appeal for the young fashion-driven Indian consumer.

This investment will help USPL and the Flipkart Group find deeper synergies as we continue on our commitment to grow an ecosystem of partnerships that deliver value for consumers and brands," said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart.

“When the world is moving towards omnichannel retailing, we can significantly strengthen our online strategy by working with Flipkart and Myntra, the two prominent players in the Indian online fashion space,” said Anjana Reddy, Founder & CEO, USPL.