Summary
- Reliance Brands Limited signed an exclusive deal to bring Kim Kardashian’s SKIMS to India, starting with Delhi and Mumbai.
- The $5 billion shapewear label enters after recent store launches in London and Dubai, with Hong Kong and Seoul next.
- No launch date is confirmed yet; the rollout will expand across cities and digital channels in phases.
Kim Kardashian’s shapewear brand is finally headed to India, and it took Mukesh Ambani’s retail empire to get it here.
Reliance Brands Limited announced on Wednesday that it has struck an exclusive, long-term partnership with SKIMS to launch the brand in India. RBL will operate SKIMS through both physical stores and digital channels, with the first outlets opening in Delhi and Mumbai before the brand expands to other cities. It’s a familiar playbook for RBL, the same arm that brought names like Jimmy Choo and Balenciaga to Indian shoppers, but SKIMS is a different kind of catch. It’s a celebrity brand with real retail muscle behind it.
Why This Deal, Why Now
SKIMS was founded by Kardashian in 2019 and has grown from a shapewear startup into one of the fashion industry’s biggest success stories, known for inclusive sizing, body-contouring designs, and a neutral colour palette. Emma Grede and Jens Grede co-founded the brand alongside her, and the label has since expanded into underwear, loungewear, activewear, and menswear, with a strong pitch around body inclusivity and size diversity.
The valuation tells its own story. SKIMS was valued at $5 billion after raising $225 million in fresh funding earlier this year, cementing its position as one of the fastest-growing fashion brands globally. That kind of capital and brand equity doesn’t need to test India cautiously through a marketplace listing. It can walk straight in with a dedicated retail partner.
The India entry comes as SKIMS accelerates its international expansion following store launches in London and Dubai, with Hong Kong and Seoul planned next. India, in other words, isn’t an afterthought. It’s part of a deliberate sequence of premium markets SKIMS is entering one by one, and it’s the first of those stops in Asia.
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Reliance’s Role, and What It’s Betting On
RBL, a subsidiary of Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, was set up in 2007 to build and scale global fashion and lifestyle brands in India across the luxury to premium segments, and it currently runs over 1,855 doors across the country, including standalone stores and shop-in-shops. That distribution network is exactly what makes RBL the obvious partner for a brand trying to go from zero to national presence quickly, without the years most D2C entrants spend building it themselves.
Isha Ambani, Director of Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, framed the deal as more than a retail tie-up. She said SKIMS has changed how the world thinks about shape, comfort, and inclusivity, and that it speaks to a new generation of Indian consumers who want fashion that’s both aspirational and made for them.
Jens Grede, SKIMS’ co-founder and CEO, pointed to RBL’s track record building global brands in India as the reason the partnership made sense, and said the company is looking forward to expanding its retail footprint here. Kardashian herself, who co-founded the brand and serves as its chief creative officer, said the excitement from the brand’s India community has been incredible and that the team can’t wait to welcome customers into stores for the first time.
The India launch also lands as global fashion and beauty brands increasingly view the country as a key growth market, driven by rising disposable incomes and demand from Gen Z and millennial consumers. A phased nationwide expansion through both physical retail and digital commerce is the plan, rather than a single big-bang launch.
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What It Means for Indian Founders
For India’s homegrown shapewear and loungewear D2C brands, this is worth paying attention to, not panicking over. SKIMS entering through RBL validates the category. It tells investors and shoppers alike that comfort-first, inclusive-sizing apparel is a real, defensible business, not a niche.
At the same time, it raises the competitive bar. Indian brands built on similar positioning, comfortable innerwear, size inclusivity, direct-to-consumer trust, will now be shelved next to a globally recognized name with a $5 billion valuation and Reliance’s distribution behind it. The brands that survive that comparison will likely be the ones that lean harder into what a celebrity import can’t easily replicate: local fit data, price accessibility, and genuine community trust built over years, not a single splashy launch.
What’s Still Unclear
Reliance Brands has not announced an official launch date for the stores yet. Pricing, product range at launch, and how quickly the brand moves beyond Delhi and Mumbai are all still open questions. Startup INDIAX will update this story once RBL confirms specifics.
FAQs
When will SKIMS stores open in India?
No official date has been confirmed yet. Reliance Brands has said the rollout will begin with stores in Delhi and Mumbai, followed by phased expansion to other cities and digital channels.
Who will operate SKIMS in India?
Reliance Brands Limited (RBL), the premium and luxury retail arm of Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, has an exclusive partnership to run SKIMS across physical stores and digital channels in India.
What is SKIMS known for?
SKIMS is a shapewear, underwear, and loungewear brand founded by Kim Kardashian in 2019, known for inclusive sizing and body-contouring designs. It has since expanded into menswear and activewear.
How much is SKIMS worth?
SKIMS was valued at $5 billion after raising $225 million in funding earlier this year, making it one of the fastest-growing fashion brands globally.
Why does this matter for Indian startups?
It signals growing investor and consumer confidence in India’s premium apparel market, and raises the competitive bar for homegrown D2C shapewear and loungewear brands targeting similar customers.
Has SKIMS launched in other Asian markets before India?
No, India will be SKIMS’ first standalone brick-and-mortar market in Asia, following earlier launches in London and Dubai, with Hong Kong and Seoul planned next.
