Curlin - A mass premium hair care brand for curly and wavy hair

Curlin is India's one of the first mass premium hair care brand for curly and wavy hair.

Here's the excerpts from eChai with Sumit Karranji, Founder, Curlin as part of our startup showcase series.

About the team

Sumit Karranji is a 2X entrepreneur and is the founder of Curlin. 

Prior to this he had built a SaaS startup for payment reconciliation of marketplace sellers which got acquired by Vinculum (Accel Funded Startup). 

He also serves on the mentor panel of IMPunjab, iTIC-IITH, AISEA, GUSEC, GTU, CIIE, IIMA where he gives back to the startup community by mentoring early stage startups.

Eureka Moment

60% of Indians have wavy or curly hair and there is no dedicated hair care range for them. I found this as a big gap being a curly haired person myself and also being into the ecomm space since a decade.

How does it work?

https://youtu.be/TaYQBtm7WOk

Business model

We sell through our own website, marketplaces and salon channels.

Traction

We have 5000+ customers across 240 cities in India in our pre-revenue stage. 

We have raised $250k from angels and seed investors.

Community support

Looking for brainstorming on creating communities and innovative marketing ideas from the community.

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You can join the conversation on Twitter via this link here if you want to ask more questions to Sumit Karranji, Founder, Curlin.

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You can check out the upcoming in-person eChai Startup Demo Days coming up in 8 cities in India - Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Rajkot and Vadodara

Startup Stream

The eChai Effect - In Their Words

"After moving back from the USA, eChai became my go-to space to learn how the Indian startup ecosystem works. It offered direct exposure to startup thinking and a community that openly shares business insights. What stood out was how easy it was to connect, learn, and grow through real conversations. As we built our IT hardware rentals business, eChai helped us find our niche and refine our path. Proud and grateful to be part of this amazing community."
Heet Sheth - Growth and Tech, Sheth Info
Heet Sheth
Growth and Tech, Sheth Info
"From late-night brainstorming over chai to early morning founder calls, eChai has been more than just a network for me; it’s been home base for ideas, impact, and inspiration. What started as a simple meetup years ago turned into a powerful movement, connecting founders, creators, and dreamers. I’ve had the privilege of seeing startups find product-market fit, marketers (like me) find unexpected collaborations, and most importantly, people finding their tribe. संगच्छध्वं संवदध्वं – Let us move together, speak together. It’s not just a verse from the Rigveda — it’s how Jatin and the entire eChai community truly operate. We don’t just network, we grow together. Forever grateful to be a part of the eChai Effect.
Jaydip Parikh - Chief Everything Officer at Tej SolPro
Jaydip Parikh
Chief Everything Officer at Tej SolPro
“When we launched LegalWiz.in back in 2016, concept of procuring legal and compliance services through a digital commerce platform wasn't as prominent in India. eChai played a significant role in providing the early adopters, and building significant positioning in the startup fraternity. Overtime, eChai grew to be a massive network of like-minded entrepreneurs and extended that benefit to all the members in a true "co-rise" spirit. I personally love to attend eChai events, learn from subject matter experts who share relatable and actionable insights and experiences. For startup journeys, it is so important to be surrounded by people who can add relevance, perspective, and push you to do better. Most importantly a group of people where you aren't being judged about things going right or wrong, but be a motivational force that keeps you going, yet keeping you in check. eChai is that place for me!”
Shrijay Sheth - Founder at LegalWiz.in and Hire4Higher Consulting
Shrijay Sheth
Founder at LegalWiz.in and Hire4Higher Consulting

eChai Partner Brands

eChai Ventures partners with select brands as their growth partner - working together to explore new ideas, open doors, and build momentum across the startup ecosystem.