ED 16th Anniversary Special: 16 indie brands you need to shop from now

Another inspired year bites the dust and we already have reasons to celebrate – it is our sweet 16! As a part of our festivities, we dipped into the treasure trove called India.

With our current December – January issue focusing on Gen Next, it was only obvious we curated a list of young indie brands you need to shop from now.

Products steeped in traditional motifs but reflecting a modern touch: There’s a lot to love about indie brands. We like to think that no desi abode is truly complete without Indian ornamentation no matter how big or small. With new local brands debuting in every city and online, the smartest way to shop is local.

Take a look to find many more “Ideas You Can Use Every Single Day”.

1. Baarique

Driven by the desire to create beautiful and exclusive products, Malika Budhiraj and Surkhi Matharu established Baarique. With designs are influenced by Indian culture, art, the brand offers Kansa, brass and copper utensils that are specifically chosen from the traditional metal smiths of UP and Rajasthan and adorned with intricate artwork re-created by painters from the founders original hand-drawn designs.

Website: www.baarique.com

2. Baro

What started as a furniture experiment called Highlight Living at the Highlight Films’ office in Mumbai to the genesis of Baro, co-founders Srila Chatterjee and Siddharth Sirohi’s journey has been an inspiring plot. Today, Baro has propelled into a brand with its own identity that retails locally produced furniture mainly designed by Siddharth and heavily influenced by the timeless mid-century modern movement.

Website: www.baro-india.com

3. Calcutta Restoration Company

For the historically minded aesthete, we have unearthed a new gem. Calcutta Restoration Company, founded in 2014, is a restoration studio that procures and rehabilitates old pieces of furniture, maps and prints to make them relevant in the present day. We love the unique two-piece teakwood Victorian Cabinet-on-stand.

Website: www.calcuttarestoration.com

4. CuroCarte.com

Handmade products have a charm of their own and when sourced from all over the world their value increases manyfold, making them keepsakes for posterity. This is the experience the global luxury brand CuroCarte.com offers to discerning connoisseurs. The in-house team of designers collaborates with artisans from around the world including countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and UK to curate a cherry picked repertoire of resplendent offerings that reflect intricate craftsmanship and splendour.

Website: www.curocarte.com

5. Dale & Co.

Founded by Ananya Jhalani, Dale + Co was born with an aim to bring worldwide craftsmanship to the discerning Indian consumer. Today, the label retails a curated edit of indigenous handcrafted products from various countries for every discerning connoisseur, without having to break the bank.

Website: www.daleandco.in

6. Magari

The fastest way to inject a fresh aesthetic is with a little home improvement. Magari, a new and unique furniture and furnishings store perched in Indiranagar, Bangalore is a good way to start your hunt to revamp your space. The brainchild of entrepreneur Vishal Wadhwa and architect Amitha Madan, the boutique is a hotbed of vast range of products spread over three floors including furniture, fabrics, lights, accessories, wallpaper, rugs, and wooden flooring, bedding, wardrobes and kitchen and office solutions.

Where: Available at 872/D, Ground Floor, Trinity Woods, 80 feet Road, Indiranagar, Bengaluru 38

7. Masilo – Linens for Littles

New on the block, Masilo – Linen for Littles will bring more joy to your bundle of joy with their signature designs, printed on certified organic cotton. Started by Mumbai entrepreneur Eisha Maskara Sheth, it specialises in pure cotton baby bedding, nursery decor and gift bundles that will have your kid begging for bedtime.

Website: www.masilo.in

8. Material Immaterial Studio

Design lovers, we have found you a new crush. Material Immaterial Studio was founded on the basic principles of bare beauty of materials. From concrete cufflinks to miniature concrete homes, the brand offers a design approach has always been of what to leave out, rather than what to put in.

Website: www.materialimmaterial.com

9. Napeansea Store

Founded by mother-daughter design team, Reena and Rohini Wahi, Napeansea is a small but growing collection of homeware and lifestyle accessories that pays homage to the multi-faceted city of Mumbai. The brand is a fresh and elegant interpretation of India’s rich craftwork combining traditional techniques like bandhani, hand block printing and embroidery for a new audience.

Website: www.napeanseastore.com

10. Nicobar

From the same family that runs luxury brand Good Earth, comes their newest venture – Nicobar, a label with an ecommerce store and its first outlet in Mumbai. Enter through a wooden double door to a happy place that instills a feeling of wanderlust with its lush palm leaves, pineapple wallpaper, patterned pin wheels and easy breezy music. Across their three verticals – Home, Clothing and Travel – the label exemplifies tropical luxury and relaxed, slow living, all inspired by the majestic Indian Ocean. Run by Raul Rai and Simran Lal, the new brand is evidently youthful in mindset.

Website: www.nicobar.com

11. Objectry

Run by Delhi based duo, Aanchal Goel and Sugandh Kumar, Objectry launched their first series of small items early this year. Drawing inspiration from modern art and architecture, the pair likes to give prominence to the finer details of things.

Website: www.facebook.com/objectry

12. Olie

Olie is a little family-run studio based in Bangalore, India that dreams of bringing its luxurious, hand-crafted decor accessories to homes across the world.

Website: www.olie.co.in

13. PoppadumArt

Founded by Saanwari Gorwaney in 2011, PoppadumArt is a young Indie decor brand that focuses on designing quirky, fun products that’ll bring a smile to your face. From Dad’s whisky bottles upcycled into hand-painted bar accessories, one-of-a-kind mirrors that transform you into your favourite character, to mum’s kitchen utensils reborn as bright, colourful planters, the portal has everything you need to transform a mundane space into something cheery, bright and colourful.

Website: www.poppadumart.com

14. Room Therapy

Brainchild of architect and interior designer Sona Reddy, Room Therapy was incepted with a credo that small accents can have a huge impact. The Hyderabad based brand has transformed the vicinity Jubilee Hills into a retail hotspot and offers patrons a global repertoire of elements to provide complete solutions for any space.

Website: www.roomtherapyhome.com

15. Sky Goodies

Owned by Amit Gudibanda and Misha Gurnanee Gudibanda, Sky Goodies is a brand that retails DIY paper and digital products. From toys in eclectic shapes like trucks, rickshaws and more, favour boxes, party return gifts, papercraft kits, calendars, planners, organizers, christmas décor and amongst many more rainbow hued offerings with playful designs, they bring little bit of joy to mundane lives.

Website: www.in.skygoodies.co

16. Varnam

During a trip to Mysore enroute Channapatna, Karthik Vaidyanathan, who hails from Chettinad region of South India, was instantly smitten by colourful toys from Channapatna. This fascination led to the inception of Varnam. An award winning social enterprise, it collaborates with artisans from the region to realise a series of designs interpreting this 200 year old toy-making craft in the home and lifestyle space.

Website www.varnam.co.in

Offering the finest picks from across various decor and architecture sections is our 16th anniversary Dec-Jan issue with a focus on monotones. Click here to get your copy!