Prerna Gupta-Led Luxury Watch House Rotoris Raises ₹70 Crore From Blume, Plans Rotoris Houses in Mumbai and New York

Luxury watchmaking has long been dominated by Swiss houses with centuries of heritage. An Indian start-up led by Prerna Gupta is attempting something few would have predicted: building a luxury watch brand from India for the world, and investors are backing the ambition.

Rotoris, a Gurugram-based luxury watch brand, has raised ₹70 crore in a Series A round led by Blume Ventures, according to Indian Startup News and other reports on Tuesday, October 27. The round comes less than a year after the company's $3 million seed round in December 2025.

Other participants include Centricity and a unicorn-focused investor network, along with family offices and individuals. Individual investors include Diwakar Goel, global head of data at BlackRock; Atul Singh, former group president for Asia Pacific at Coca-Cola; Adhiraj Burman of the Dabur family; and actor and television host Rannvijay Singha.

A woman at the helm

Rotoris was founded in 2025 by Aakash Anand, Prerna Gupta, Anant Narula, Kunal Kapania and Harman Wadhwa. Gupta leads the company and oversees brand development and customer experience, according to Indian Startup News.

Her leadership is notable in an industry where women have historically been underrepresented in senior roles, both in watchmaking and in the luxury sector more broadly. Rotoris's emphasis on design, exclusivity and customer experience reflects the brand-building that Gupta oversees.

Anand previously scaled the fragrance brand Bella Vita Organic, bringing experience in building direct-to-consumer consumer brands. The company describes Wadhwa as India's only formally trained watchmaker from Switzerland, and its watches are assembled in India under his direction.

An invitation-only model

Rotoris does not sell its watches openly. Buyers join a registry, wait for an allocation and then complete a private purchase. Each watch is individually numbered.

The model borrows from the playbook of high-end luxury brands, where scarcity and waiting lists help build desirability. Nearly 100,000 people have joined the registry since the brand's launch in February 2026, with about 40% from outside India, including the United States, Dubai and Australia, according to the company.

Sold out at launch

Rotoris launched with five collections: Auriqua, Monarch, Astonia, Arvion and Manifesta. Its first drop of 2,100 numbered watches sold out quickly, according to the company.

The watches use sapphire crystal, automatic and quartz movements and 316L stainless steel cases. The newer Manifesta collection uses 18-karat solid gold, semi-precious stone dials, lab-grown diamond hour markers and a Japanese Miyota automatic movement. Components are sourced from Switzerland, Italy and other global suppliers.

According to Robb Report India, watches at the brand's Delhi salon were priced roughly between ₹25,000 and ₹50,000, with newer releases priced higher. That places Rotoris in the accessible luxury segment rather than competing directly with Swiss brands that cost lakhs of rupees.

Rotoris House goes global

Rotoris operates a showroom format called Rotoris House, currently in Delhi. With the new funding, it plans to open Rotoris House locations in Mumbai and New York.

A New York showroom would be an ambitious step for a young Indian brand, putting it in one of the world's most competitive luxury markets. The large share of international registrations suggests that there is demand, particularly among the Indian diaspora, for a premium watch brand with Indian roots.

The brand also made an appearance at Watches & Wonders Geneva in April 2026, one of the most important events in the global watch industry.

Where the money goes

Rotoris plans to use the funding for research and development, expanding production and growing its physical presence in India and abroad.

Its seed round was led by Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath and included actor Vivek Anand Oberoi, Venture Catalysts, comedian Tanmay Bhat and more than 30 founders of Indian consumer brands, including the founders of Mamaearth, Noise and Snitch.

India's luxury moment

India's luxury market has been growing rapidly as incomes rise among the affluent and the number of high-net-worth individuals increases. Global luxury brands have expanded their presence in Indian cities, and Indian consumers are a growing force in luxury spending worldwide.

At the same time, Indian brands have begun to compete in premium segments, from fashion and jewellery to fragrances and accessories, often combining Indian design sensibilities with global quality standards.

Challenges

Building a luxury brand takes time, and credibility in watches is closely linked to heritage and craftsmanship. Rotoris will need to maintain quality as it scales production, manage the cost of physical showrooms in expensive locations and sustain the exclusivity that drives its registry model.

The economics of scarcity

The registry model offers business advantages beyond brand appeal. By selling in limited, numbered drops, Rotoris can match production to demand, reduce unsold inventory and collect data on prospective customers. A long waiting list also provides a signal of demand to investors and helps the company plan manufacturing.

The risk is that scarcity becomes frustration if customers wait too long, or that demand fades once the novelty wears off. Sustaining interest requires a steady flow of new designs and a strong brand story.

India's watch market

India's watch market has historically been dominated by domestic mass-market brands, led by Titan, alongside imported Swiss and Japanese brands at the premium end. Smartwatches have captured a large share of younger consumers in recent years, putting pressure on traditional watch sales. Rotoris is betting on a resurgence of interest in mechanical and design-led watches among affluent Indians who see a watch as an expression of personal style and identity rather than a functional device.

Investors with a consumer lens

The investor line-up, mixing institutional venture capital, family offices, consumer brand founders and celebrities, reflects how Indian consumer startups increasingly build networks of backers who can open doors, provide marketing reach and lend credibility. For a luxury brand, association with recognisable names can help shape perception among aspirational customers, particularly in the brand's early years.

What comes next

With fresh capital, Rotoris will expand its collections and open showrooms in Mumbai and New York. Under Gupta's leadership, the company's progress will be watched as a test of whether an Indian luxury brand can win customers on the world stage, and whether a new generation of Indian consumer brands can compete in categories once reserved for European heritage houses. Collectors and analysts will also watch how the brand balances exclusivity with growth, since expanding production too quickly could dilute the scarcity that has driven demand for its numbered watches.