Mumbai: KT Men, the men’s grooming and personal care brand from the house of KT Professional, has announced a strategic partnership with the Argentina Football Association (AFA), bringing global football stars Lionel Messi, Julián Álvarez and Enzo Fernández into India’s rapidly expanding men’s grooming market through the launch of its upcoming GOAT Edition range.
The bootstrapped company is targeting ₹200 crore in top-line revenue over the next 18 to 24 months through the new line, backed by an aggressive omnichannel expansion strategy spanning ecommerce, quick commerce, salons, premium barbershops, modern trade and international collaborations.
As part of the growth push, KT Men is investing over ₹36 crore in nationwide brand-building initiatives across digital campaigns, OTT integrations, sports partnerships, creator activations, outdoor media, performance marketing and retail visibility programmes.
The partnership marks one of the most ambitious international sports licensing collaborations by an Indian grooming brand and aligns with KT Men’s broader vision of building a sports-inspired grooming ecosystem centred around football culture, active lifestyles and performance-driven self-care.
India’s men’s grooming market and sports commerce industry continue to witness strong growth momentum. According to IMARC Group, India’s men’s and young boys’ grooming and personal care market is currently valued at around ₹600 crore and is projected to grow steadily over the coming years. Simultaneously, KPMG India’s ‘Sportlight, The Business of Sports in India’ report estimates the country’s sports industry at nearly ₹1,000 crore, expected to cross ₹4,000 crore by 2030.
Football has also emerged as one of India’s strongest youth-engagement platforms beyond cricket, with industry estimates pegging the country’s football fan base at nearly 390 million consumers across digital and broadcast platforms.
The KT Men x AFA partnership has been designed as a long-term strategic licensing and branding ecosystem that will extend through the FIFA World Cup 2026 cycle. The collaboration includes official branding rights, co-branded campaigns, merchandising, fan activations, retail integrations and category-focused marketing initiatives across India and global markets.
The first GOAT Edition collection is scheduled to launch on 24 May and will feature 12 premium athletic-performance grooming SKUs across haircare, bodycare, styling and recovery categories. The range will be priced between ₹699 and ₹999 and will be available for pre-order on KT Men’s direct-to-consumer platform.
The collection includes cooling body washes, deodorants, recovery sprays, scalp-care solutions, anti-fatigue skincare and styling products designed for high-performance and active lifestyles. The formulations incorporate menthol cooling technology, niacinamide, zinc sweat-defence complexes, caffeine blends, SPF protection and hydrolysed keratin proteins.
Commenting on the launch, Dhruv Sayani, Founder of KT Men and KT Professional, said, “India’s grooming industry is hitting a massive behavioural tipping point. Younger consumers today are completely influenced by intense fitness culture, competitive sports, outdoor routines, and performance-driven lifestyles. Despite this shift, most grooming brands still position their products around attraction, basic fragrance, or cosmetic vanity. We identified a clear, massive whitespace opportunity to build real products engineered around movement, high sweat, muscle recovery, active lifestyles, and athlete-inspired routines instead. This is a cultural moment. Football today is emotion, ambition and global unity, and no team or athletes represents that better than the Argentine National Team, featuring Lionel Messi, Julian Alvarez, Enzo Fernandez. The GOAT Edition is KT MEN’s tribute to greatness itself. India has never witnessed a grooming movement of this scale connected to global football icons. The association with AFA gives KT MEN the power to connect with millions of young Indian consumers who dream bigger and live with passion every day.”
KT Men expects the collaboration to drive a 6 to 9x brand scale expansion over the next 36 months, supported by deeper retail penetration and sports-led storytelling. The company aims to cross 25,000 retail touchpoints across India within the next two years.
Leandro Petersen, Chief Commercial & Marketing Officer of the Argentina Football Association, said, “India represents one of the absolute most exciting growth engines globally for football, youth culture, and sports-led consumer engagement. We are pleased to partner up with KT Men as the brand designs highly innovative consumer experiences centred around active lifestyles, global football culture, and performance-focused grooming.”
KT Men currently operates across haircare, skincare, body care, styling and fragrance categories, leveraging the nationwide salon and retail network established by KT Professional and KT Kids.
