Yorkshire brand signs joint venture with Indian cricketing legend expected to be worth £30m

Payntr, the West Yorkshire-based cricket shoe brand, has entered in a joint venture with SEVEN by MS Dhoni which is expected to be worth a minimum of £30m over five years.

The Payntr brand was launched into the market little over a year ago, and comprises a range of cricket shoes that have been worn by some of the world’s top cricketers, with ex-international cricketing legend Graeme Swann calling them a “game changer.”

The startup was established by ex-professional Northamptonshire cricketer David Paynter, as a direct result of his dissatisfaction with the limited range and effectiveness of the cricket shoes available during his playing career.

SEVEN by MS Dhoni is an Indian fitness and active lifestyle sportswear brand under the banner of Rhiti Group. SEVEN manufactures and markets sportswear footwear, apparel and accessories.

Indian cricketer and the former captain of the Indian National Cricket Team, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, also co-owns the business of SEVEN brand along with Mr. Arun Pandey, CMD and Chairman, Rhiti Group.

David spent several years researching sports shoe design, consulting with various experts, then making use of his own unique playing experience he came up with a prototype. After further refinement, the Payntr X Shoe was developed.

Now in its newest iteration, the Payntr MK2 will form the basic design of the cricket shoe to be sold throughout the Asian market, and will be branded Payntr by SEVEN.

David said: “Almost as soon as we launched onto the market, we were overwhelmed by the tremendous interest from some of the world’s top international cricketers.

“Everybody wanted to try them and within weeks we were seeing the Payntr shoes on the global sports stage. It wasn’t long before we were in talks with SEVEN by MS Dhoni and after discussions and due diligence, we are absolutely delighted to announce the deal is complete.”

Arun Pandey, chairman and director of Rhiti Group, commented: “Cricket has been the core of our inception, especially with MS Dhoni’s contribution to our brand.

“I am sure that this joint venture will help us reach our vision: making cricket accessible to everyone in the world.”

The Payntr cricket shoe, which comes in five distinct colour-ways, is now in shops. When Payntr by SEVEN is introduced into the Asian market later this year, it is planned there will be more than eight variations of colours and trims, including camouflage.