Phool aims to make leather obsolete with 'Fleather' made from flowers

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Apr 26, 2022

Flower recycling technology business Phool has developed a vegan leather substitute it calls ‘Fleather’ and aims to disrupt the global leather industry to make its cruelty-free leather alternative the norm. 

Phool has been steadily building its fragrance and incense brand which uses waste flowers from temples and other locations to create fragrances. The brand has a new ambition, to bring its vegan leather to the masses, Forbes India reported. 
 
The business recently raised $8 million in its Series A funding round with venture fund Sixth Sense Ventures, Bollywood celebrity Alia Bhatt, and IAN Fund. The business plans to use the funds to scale up its operations both in India and internationally, build India’s largest fragrance brand, and harness research and development to bring its Fleather material to global markets to the extent that it replaces animal leather. 

The Fleather material can be used to make any leather goods ranging from handbags to accessories and more. The brand aims to use the same digital-first approach it has followed with its fragrance business to grow its Fleather business. 
 
“The brand’s premium and international appeal can be easily leveraged across the globe, presenting a huge untapped opportunity for Phool's certified, Indian-origin products,” said Sixth Sense Ventures’ founder sand CEO Nikhil Vohra, Forbes India reported. “Its moonshot, Fleather, is a game-changing innovation, and presents a massive opportunity.” 
 
Ankit Agarwal and Prateek Kumar launched Phool in 2017 as a flower recycling technology startup. The business is based in Kanpur and works with self-help women groups to gather and recycle around 13 tonnes of floral waste per day.