Desigual returns to India via Myntra partnership

Madrid – Desigual is making another attempt to penetrate the Indian market. The company, founded by Thomas Meyer, has resumed operations there through a new partnership with the Indian e-commerce platform and marketplace, Myntra. Under this agreement, the Spanish fashion multinational will once again begin selling its products in the country via the digital channel.

According to a statement from Desigual's management, the brand has partnered with Myntra to re-enter the Indian market. They describe this as a “decisive” step in Desigual's international expansion strategy. The alliance with the Indian platform will allow the Spanish company to resume its activity in India through the online channel. It will begin operating on Myntra's platform, a portal highlighted as the “leading fashion and beauty platform” in India.

For this latest return to the Indian market, the brand founded by Thomas Meyer will resume its activity by selling a curated selection of accessories from Desigual's spring/summer 2025 and autumn/winter 2025/2026 collections on Myntra's e-commerce site. It is already planned that, as a new stage of this partnership, the product offering on Myntra's digital ecosystem will be expanded in the 2026 financial year with the introduction of the first clothing items. This is a step forward in Desigual's renewed roadmap for entering and growing in the Indian market. The Spanish brand will aim to offer a more complete representation of its brand universe and strengthen its ties with the local customer base. Desigual is now confident it can carve out its own space with this audience, while enjoying the success of its completed renewal and relaunch process.

“With over 60 million active users and a consolidated position as a ‘premium destination’, Myntra offers Desigual a key channel to access a young, ‘digital-first’ audience with a strong affinity for international brands,” Desigual stated in a press release. With these competitive advantages, they are confident of finally achieving the goal of “entering the Indian market”. They emphasise that India is “the world's third-largest market in terms of online shoppers and one of the most dynamic in fashion e-commerce growth.” These features make it a particularly promising environment for the Spanish company as it continues its ambitious “international expansion strategy”, this time “by entering India through Myntra's e-commerce platform”.

Another offensive on the Indian market

This is not the first time Desigual has entered India. The company, founded by Thomas Meyer, first launched in the country in 2019. At that time, it was reported that the brand had secured an agreement with Myntra to start selling its collections to Indian consumers. Following this initial step into India, Desigual sought to expand by announcing the opening of its first two stores in the country in October 2020. These points-of-sale were launched under the framework of an agreement reached in 2019 with the Indian business group Tablez to develop a retail network for Desigual in India.

Based on the information provided by Desigual today, it is clear the company eventually discontinued its operations in India. It now returns to the market with renewed vigour, driven by the positive momentum the brand seems to be experiencing in terms of critical acclaim, image and market repositioning. This success is reflected in its commercial performance. At the close of the 2024 financial year, an astonishing 35 percent of total sales were generated through the online channel. This figure supports the strategy of re-entering the Indian market through an online channel with an operator like Myntra. Myntra was acquired in May 2014 by the Indian company Flipkart. This group, in turn, came under the control of the US multinational Walmart in May 2018, following the purchase of 77 percent of its capital for 16 billion dollars. By January 31, 2024, the company reported this stake had increased to approximately 85 percent.

“The brand's entry into the country opens the door to showcase” Desigual's “creative universe” and “its distinctive values, already recognised by thousands of ‘expressionist’ consumers in other markets, in a region crucial for the growth of fashion and retail,” stated the management of the Spanish fashion multinational. They add that by restarting its activity in “one of the world's largest e-commerce markets through Myntra's e-commerce platform”, India “is consolidated as a key market within Desigual's 2025–2028 expansion plan.”