WHO WE ARE
Incorporated in 1998, Wildcraft India Pvt. Ltd. (WIPL) is India’s foremost company in the manufacturing and distribution of head-to-toe products for trek-to-travel solutions, serving more than 3.5 million customers annually with sales in excess of USD 100 Million.
Be it outdoor-friendly clothing, ergonomically designed gear, all-terrain footwear or all-purpose travelcase; Wildcraft has one mission – to engineer versatile, multi-functional, lightweight, weather-resilient products for the savvy backpacker in you.
Wildcraft is equipped with an extended geo footprint of 200+ exclusive brand stores across 60+ cities with 5000+ retail points-of-sale across India. This also includes over 1000 points-of-sale across departmental stores & hyper markets. Wildcraft further has a strategic partnership with Flipkart & Myntra.
Wildcraft has been serving the armed forces, the paramilitary & police personnel through Defence and Police canteens across the country. It has now been accorded the privilege of equipping Jawans of the Indian Army with specially designed 90 Litre technical rucksacks.
MEET THE TEAM!
Aditya Upadhyay | Head, Information Technology & Systems
Aditya has been with Wildcraft since 2015 & associated since 2009. He hails from Bhopal, is a MBA from ICFAI Business School & has work experience with ABS apart from Wildcraft. Aditya currently leads a team of system engineers, manages the ERP & assists business teams on their technology needs.
Aditya has been with Wildcraft since 2015 & associated since 2009. He hails from Bhopal, is a MBA from ICFAI Business School & has work experience with ABS apart from Wildcraft. Aditya currently leads a team of system engineers, manages the ERP & assists business teams on their technology needs.
Bhupinder Singh | Chief Product Officer
Bhupinder has been with Wildcraft since 2014. He hails from Ludhiana, is an NIIFT ’96 post graduate, with extensive experience of 3years with United Colors of Benetton and 10yrs with Adidas before he joined Wildcraft. With of over 20 years in Product, Design and Development, Global Sourcing and Supply Chain Management, – Bhupinder leads Wildcraft’s Product, Sourcing , Design, R&D & Creation Lab.
Bhupinder has been with Wildcraft since 2014. He hails from Ludhiana, is an NIIFT ’96 post graduate, with extensive experience of 3years with United Colors of Benetton and 10yrs with Adidas before he joined Wildcraft. With of over 20 years in Product, Design and Development, Global Sourcing and Supply Chain Management, – Bhupinder leads Wildcraft’s Product, Sourcing , Design, R&D & Creation Lab.
Gifi Gopalakrishnan | Head, Manufacturing & Supply Chain
Gifi has been with Wildcraft since 2008. One of the first team members to join, Gifi hails from Kerala & prior to Wildcraft had a prior experience with Sobha Developers in administrative roles. Gifi currently leads Wildcraft’s 2500+ manufacturing associates spread across Bangalore & Solan factories & Central Warehouse.
Gifi has been with Wildcraft since 2008. One of the first team members to join, Gifi hails from Kerala & prior to Wildcraft had a prior experience with Sobha Developers in administrative roles. Gifi currently leads Wildcraft’s 2500+ manufacturing associates spread across Bangalore & Solan factories & Central Warehouse.
Himanshu Ranjan | National Head, Distribution
Himanshu has been with Wildcraft since 2013. He hails from Bokaro(JH), is a management graduate & prior to Wildcraft has a rich experience across FMCG & Sports goods sector with Nestle & SSIPL. Himanshu currently heads Wildcraft’s sales & distribution teams across India.
Himanshu has been with Wildcraft since 2013. He hails from Bokaro(JH), is a management graduate & prior to Wildcraft has a rich experience across FMCG & Sports goods sector with Nestle & SSIPL. Himanshu currently heads Wildcraft’s sales & distribution teams across India.
Kumar Rohan | Head, Business Strategy
Rohan has been with Wildcraft since 2012. He hails from Patna, is an IIM Kolkata ’06 batch graduate, & prior to Wildcraft was with ITC. Rohan drives Wildcraft’s strategic business objectives by exploring new opportunities in products and services and deepening our distribution. He is also responsible for driving Customer Engagement and realign Wildcraft’s communication strategy.
Rohan has been with Wildcraft since 2012. He hails from Patna, is an IIM Kolkata ’06 batch graduate, & prior to Wildcraft was with ITC. Rohan drives Wildcraft’s strategic business objectives by exploring new opportunities in products and services and deepening our distribution. He is also responsible for driving Customer Engagement and realign Wildcraft’s communication strategy.
Lakshmi Narayanan Vinod | Head, Business Support
Vinod has been with Wildcraft since 2009. He hails from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, and is a Postgraduate in Business Management & Administration. Prior to Wildcraft, he was into Portfolio Management for Standard Chartered and Mashreq bank, Dubai Operations. Vinod currently heads Wildcraft’s entire Business Support function & leads multi-disciplinary support teams across Finance, Customer Support, Supply Chain, Marketing, Sales, & Administration functions.
Vinod has been with Wildcraft since 2009. He hails from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, and is a Postgraduate in Business Management & Administration. Prior to Wildcraft, he was into Portfolio Management for Standard Chartered and Mashreq bank, Dubai Operations. Vinod currently heads Wildcraft’s entire Business Support function & leads multi-disciplinary support teams across Finance, Customer Support, Supply Chain, Marketing, Sales, & Administration functions.
Pawandip Singh | Chief Marketing Officer
Pawandip has been with Wildcraft since 2017. He hails from Delhi, is an MBA ’98 batch from Mumbai University, & prior to Wildcraft had rich experience of over 20 years & has worked across multiple lifestyle brands like Levi’s, Madura & Chumbak in leadership positions. Pawandip currently heads the Marketing function and wants to make brand Wildcraft meaningful, different & salient.
Pawandip has been with Wildcraft since 2017. He hails from Delhi, is an MBA ’98 batch from Mumbai University, & prior to Wildcraft had rich experience of over 20 years & has worked across multiple lifestyle brands like Levi’s, Madura & Chumbak in leadership positions. Pawandip currently heads the Marketing function and wants to make brand Wildcraft meaningful, different & salient.
Prasenjit Kundu | Design Lead
Prasenjit has been with Wildcraft since 2014. He hails from Kolkata and is a 2005 NIFT graduate and has an Apparel Design PG from NID batch of 2008. Prior to Wildcraft he was working with Dhama Innovations, a tech start-up as one of its core team members since its inception in 2008. He has been instrumental in implementing a cohesive design process and creating a unified VBL (Visual Brand Language) across all the brand’s product verticals and leads a talented design team.
Prasenjit has been with Wildcraft since 2014. He hails from Kolkata and is a 2005 NIFT graduate and has an Apparel Design PG from NID batch of 2008. Prior to Wildcraft he was working with Dhama Innovations, a tech start-up as one of its core team members since its inception in 2008. He has been instrumental in implementing a cohesive design process and creating a unified VBL (Visual Brand Language) across all the brand’s product verticals and leads a talented design team.
Shyamala Deshpande | Chief Human Resource Officer
Shyamala has joined Wildcraft full time since 2020 & has been associated since 2012. She hails from Mangalore , is an IHM, Mumbai graduate & prior to Wildcraft had a rich & varied experience across HR, L&D & Operations at ITC Welcomgroup, Café Coffee Day, & as an independent business consultant. Shyamala has been instrumental in helping set up to Wildcraft’s Corporate HR function as a consultant & today leads it’s HR team.
Shyamala has joined Wildcraft full time since 2020 & has been associated since 2012. She hails from Mangalore , is an IHM, Mumbai graduate & prior to Wildcraft had a rich & varied experience across HR, L&D & Operations at ITC Welcomgroup, Café Coffee Day, & as an independent business consultant. Shyamala has been instrumental in helping set up to Wildcraft’s Corporate HR function as a consultant & today leads it’s HR team.
Somak Dhar | Head, E-Commerce
Somak has been with Wildcraft since 2018. He hails from Kolkata, is an IIM Bangalore ’02 batch graduate, & prior to Wildcraft was with Licious, FreshMenu & the Aditya Birla Group including AB Fashion & Retail (Madura Garments). Somak has previously led Brand Management & Digital Marketing for Wildcraft, and is presently responsible for strategic partnerships and business growth in the e-commerce space.
Somak has been with Wildcraft since 2018. He hails from Kolkata, is an IIM Bangalore ’02 batch graduate, & prior to Wildcraft was with Licious, FreshMenu & the Aditya Birla Group including AB Fashion & Retail (Madura Garments). Somak has previously led Brand Management & Digital Marketing for Wildcraft, and is presently responsible for strategic partnerships and business growth in the e-commerce space.
Syed Faheem | Head, Institutional, Industries & International Business
Syed has been with Wildcraft since 2009. One of the first team member to join, Syed hails from Chennai, is an commerce graduate, & prior to Wildcraft was with Standard Chartered & Sutherland. Syed has led multiple functions over the years at Wildcraft, setting up its first branch outside Bangalore to setting up Southern Regional Sales, to National Channel Development function, to International Business. Today he heads the Institutional,Industrial and International business.
Syed has been with Wildcraft since 2009. One of the first team member to join, Syed hails from Chennai, is an commerce graduate, & prior to Wildcraft was with Standard Chartered & Sutherland. Syed has led multiple functions over the years at Wildcraft, setting up its first branch outside Bangalore to setting up Southern Regional Sales, to National Channel Development function, to International Business. Today he heads the Institutional,Industrial and International business.
Vipul Sirohi | Head, Brand & Category Management, Wildcraft & Wiki
Vipul has been with Wildcraft since 2011 & associated since 2009. Vipul hails from New Delhi, has pursued Exec. MBA from IIM-Bangalore in 2014 and is a NIFT ’08 graduate. Prior to Wildcraft, at 25, he was a founder of an IIT Chennai incubated product design & sourcing firm. At Wildcraft, Vipul has worked across product, headed Bangalore branch, Western Region & today heads the Brand & Category Management functions for Wildcraft ,WiKi and TorQ.
Vipul has been with Wildcraft since 2011 & associated since 2009. Vipul hails from New Delhi, has pursued Exec. MBA from IIM-Bangalore in 2014 and is a NIFT ’08 graduate. Prior to Wildcraft, at 25, he was a founder of an IIT Chennai incubated product design & sourcing firm. At Wildcraft, Vipul has worked across product, headed Bangalore branch, Western Region & today heads the Brand & Category Management functions for Wildcraft ,WiKi and TorQ.
Meet the founders!
Started in the late 1990s by Dinesh K.S. (centre), an engineer and an outdoor enthusiast, Wildcraft was born out of a need to create reliable and great quality outdoor gear and equipment in India. The story goes that during one of his outdoor excursions, Dinesh met with an accident. It was after this incident that the idea of Wildcraft was born.
Gaurav and Siddharth joined Wildcraft fresh out of B-School in 2000. It was a part-time role for both of them at that time as they had corporate careers of their own. It was in 2007 that they decided to take this passion in the outdoor space and turn their entrepreneurial zeal into a commercial opportunity.
Gaurav and Siddharth joined Wildcraft fresh out of B-School in 2000. It was a part-time role for both of them at that time as they had corporate careers of their own. It was in 2007 that they decided to take this passion in the outdoor space and turn their entrepreneurial zeal into a commercial opportunity.
Dinesh | Co-Founder
The founding partner, Dinesh in late ‘90s set the fledgling company on a firm course to become what is today known as India’s pioneer & leader in travel, outdoor & adventure space.
A warm hearted, free-spirited mountaineer & climber, Dinesh hails from Bangalore, though spent most of his initial years in Jamshedpur.
An engineer by training, prior to Wildcraft, Dinesh worked as National Open Leadership School (NOLS) Field Instructor, across US & Canada - training people in leadership, risk management, & outdoor skills.
Steering Wildcraft in its ‘garage’ years, Dini (as he is fondly called) moved out from operational roles a decade back, to pursue his dream on spending time in the great outdoors.
Nowadays, he spends half of his time climbing 6000m+ peaks & the other half planning them!
He continues to function as the team’s true north.
The founding partner, Dinesh in late ‘90s set the fledgling company on a firm course to become what is today known as India’s pioneer & leader in travel, outdoor & adventure space.
A warm hearted, free-spirited mountaineer & climber, Dinesh hails from Bangalore, though spent most of his initial years in Jamshedpur.
An engineer by training, prior to Wildcraft, Dinesh worked as National Open Leadership School (NOLS) Field Instructor, across US & Canada - training people in leadership, risk management, & outdoor skills.
Steering Wildcraft in its ‘garage’ years, Dini (as he is fondly called) moved out from operational roles a decade back, to pursue his dream on spending time in the great outdoors.
Nowadays, he spends half of his time climbing 6000m+ peaks & the other half planning them!
He continues to function as the team’s true north.
Gaurav Dublish | Co-Founder
One of the two co-founders, who between them manage Wildcraft’s Strategic Approach & Operations.
Gaurav hails from Meerut, is an NMIMS MBA ’00 graduate, & has been a part of the Wildcraft journey since 2000, fresh from college.
With over 20 years of experience, Gaurav has been leading the mantle at Wildcraft full time since 2008.
Prior to Wildcraft, Gaurav spent 7+ years at Blow Plast & Standard Chartered Bank across Sales, Product & Portfolio Management across India & Middle East.
One of the two co-founders, who between them manage Wildcraft’s Strategic Approach & Operations.
Gaurav hails from Meerut, is an NMIMS MBA ’00 graduate, & has been a part of the Wildcraft journey since 2000, fresh from college.
With over 20 years of experience, Gaurav has been leading the mantle at Wildcraft full time since 2008.
Prior to Wildcraft, Gaurav spent 7+ years at Blow Plast & Standard Chartered Bank across Sales, Product & Portfolio Management across India & Middle East.
Siddharth Sood | Co-Founder
One of the two co-founders, who between them manage Wildcraft’s Strategic Approach & Operations.
Sidharth hails from Shimla, is an NMIMS MBA ’00 graduate & has been a part of the Wildcraft journey since 2000, fresh from college.
With over 20 years of experience, Sid has been leading the mantle at Wildcraft full time since 2008.
Prior to Wildcraft, Sid spent 7+ years at Hewitt Associates & General Electric, across Operations & Finance roles in multiple businesses across Europe & Asia.
One of the two co-founders, who between them manage Wildcraft’s Strategic Approach & Operations.
Sidharth hails from Shimla, is an NMIMS MBA ’00 graduate & has been a part of the Wildcraft journey since 2000, fresh from college.
With over 20 years of experience, Sid has been leading the mantle at Wildcraft full time since 2008.
Prior to Wildcraft, Sid spent 7+ years at Hewitt Associates & General Electric, across Operations & Finance roles in multiple businesses across Europe & Asia.