Indian textile startup STCH has closed a Pre-Series A funding round worth $5.5 million, with Omnivore and Kae Capital leading the investment and White Venture Capital participating as well. The fresh capital will go toward advancing the company’s core mission of transforming how fabrics are created and distributed at scale, using artificial intelligence at the center of its operations.
The fashion industry has always had a sustainability problem, but most of the conversation around fixing it has focused on brands and retailers. STCH is taking a different approach entirely. The startup is working at the fabric level, which is arguably where the most foundational problems exist. High production costs, unpredictable performance of sustainable materials, and fragmented supply chains have historically made it difficult for the industry to shift toward cleaner alternatives. STCH is trying to solve all three of these problems at once, not one at a time.
The company does this by combining ongoing research and development in fabric innovation with intelligent tools that connect buyer demand to available manufacturing capacity. Instead of treating fabric development and supply chain logistics as separate challenges, STCH brings them together in a single, integrated approach.
STCH was co-founded by Narahari Payala and Aseem Chitkara, both of whom have backgrounds that are well suited to what the company is trying to build. Payala brings expertise in materials science, which is central to developing sustainable fabrics that actually perform well. Chitkara brings experience in supply chain operations, which is just as critical for ensuring that what gets developed can also be manufactured and delivered efficiently.
This combination of scientific and operational experience means the founding team understands the problem from both ends, which is often what separates startups that gain real traction from those that stay stuck at the prototype stage.
One of the strongest indicators of STCH’s potential is its order book. Even at this early stage, the company has already secured orders worth more than $15 million from global customers. That is not a small number for a startup that has not yet completed a Series A round. It suggests that the market has already validated what STCH is offering, and that buyers are willing to commit real money rather than just express interest.
This kind of commercial momentum is what tends to attract investors who are focused on scalable, market-ready solutions rather than early-stage experiments that still need years of product development before they can generate revenue.
What Investors Are Betting On
From an investor standpoint, STCH is being seen as a platform company with the potential to shape what the next era of fashion innovation looks like. The current model in fashion tech has focused heavily on consumer-facing solutions, from resale platforms to sustainability certifications visible on product labels. STCH is working on the backend, at the infrastructure level, which is where systemic change in an industry usually begins.
The company is being positioned as a global platform for textile innovation that happens to be built out of India, which gives it a strong base in one of the world’s largest textile-producing regions while targeting buyers and partners worldwide.
With this funding now in place, STCH has the resources to expand its research capabilities, grow its manufacturing network, and continue scaling its order pipeline. The company is not trying to build a niche sustainable fabric brand. It is building the underlying infrastructure that could eventually power how sustainable textiles are developed and delivered across the global fashion industry.
