The past year has been action-packed for direct-to-consumer or D2C brands, whether it is Lenskart going public or Minimalist getting scooped up by Hindustan Unilever. At the start of this new year, Brand Wagon asks three industry leaders from the world of advertising and brand strategy to identify digital-first brands that have the potential to roil the waters in 2026.
Aalap Desai, co-founder and CCO of tgthr, Manish Solanki, COO and co-founder, TheSmallBigIdea, and Asparsh Sinha, managing partner, OPEN Strategy & Design, give us their top picks (in no particular order). The brands below have been shortlisted not from the viewpoint of funding, public listing or revenue growth but for their differentiation strategy and unique marketing efforts.
The Whole Truth
The shift towards ‘conscious eating’ today resonates with a large number of consumers, and The Whole Truth has built its equity on the back of product transparency, observes Desai. Showcasing product information and ingredients can often be rather boring and challenging task for advertising. But he commends the brand for its innovative messaging. Its ‘protein ke peeche kya hai’ campaign not only puts a fun twist to an old Bollywood hit tune but also humorously addresses questions about protein mixes. Solanki also singles out the brand’s ‘What’s Inside?’ campaigns that boldly list every ingredient on the front of the product packaging, transforming transparency from a “marketing claim into a trust-building product design”. The Whole Truth’s revenues saw a notable 200% growth in FY25 over FY24, crossing Rs 200 crore.
Snitch
The menswear brand had a breakout year in men’s fast fashion, aggressively building an omnichannel presence, opening physical stores soon after securing funding, unlike earlier D2C brands that stayed digital-only for years. According to Solanki, the brand’s differentiation is in how it addresses the lack of affordable, trend-forward men’s fashion without selling “fast-fashion junk.” The brand has performed well on the business front too, doubling its revenue to Rs 520 crore in FY25 within five years of launch, and widening its store count to over 90 with a focus on tier I and II cities. Its multi-channel campaigns across premium outdoor sites, social, OTT and influencer partnerships have also strengthened Snitch’s aspirational appeal.
Jaipur Rugs
It may be over 50 years old, but Jaipur Rugs has been using the D2C business model, leveraging online channels and physical stores, while working directly with thousands of artisans. Sinha lauds the brand’s recent campaigns that elevated the beauty of Indian craft. “Its tennis and cricket campaigns created a benchmark in luxury brand communication that more Indian brands should have,” he remarks. Jaipur Rugs turned heads during Wimbledon last year, when it transformed the tennis court into a court of carpets featuring 93 handwoven rugs with star player Rohan Bopanna playing against village weavers who had learned tennis for the campaign. The brand also rolled out a campaign for the ICC women’s World Cup, featuring skipper Harmanpreet Kaur and its master artisans in an ode to the women’s game and Indian craftsmanship.
Ultraviolette
The Bengaluru-based EV maker accelerated its expansion plans during the past 12 months, growing its retail presence to 30 cities. It is a relatively small player in the Indian two-wheeler EV market, but has managed to create a strong set of loyalists who swear by the brand’s bikes and designs, remarks Desai. In the past year, the brand consistently built itself as a premium tech player through community engagement rather than mass advertising. It expanded its offerings to compete in EV segments like off-road bikes, crossover models and even tech-enabled helmets. Ultraviolette also launched its F77 in the United Kingdom, taking its presence to 12 European countries.
Foxtale
The brand has carved out a unique positioning of art and science among a plethora of homegrown beauty brands flooding the market. Solanki points out that its skin radiance mask became instantly recognisable online, after it started trending on social media as the ‘purple mask’ endorsed by beauty influencers and creators. “The Emraan Hashmi lip balm campaign showed how celebrity partnerships can be culturally clever rather than transactional,” he adds, referring to the brand’s effort with the star to normalise lip care for men. It’s a brand to look out for in 2026, having just launched its Hula Hoop range of body care products.
Blue Tokai
The homegrown coffee chain saw a strong FY25, with revenues growing by over 50% driven by its expanding store footprint of over 150, omnichannel strategy and increasing focus on Gen Z consumers. It has also widened its international presence, by launching in the UAE in 2025 after entering Tokyo in 2024. “Sometimes the job of marketing is to create familiarity and everyday-ness. Blue Tokai has normalised premium and specialty coffee as an everyday purchase instead of a weekend indulgence, which is no small shift,” Sinha says. The brand is marketing itself particularly well to Gen Z customers, leveraging community building, engaging social media content and convenient product formats, with a focus on authenticity and transparency.