For a brand that has spent decades being synonymous with durability and leather craftsmanship, the real challenge today is not awareness, but perception. Red Chief does not need to introduce itself to consumers; it needs to reintroduce what it stands for in a market that has rapidly shifted toward lifestyle, sneakers, and fast-moving trends. Its latest campaign with Ayushmann Khurrana has come at a time when legacy brands are under pressure to stay culturally relevant without diluting what made them trusted in the first place.
Rahul Sharma, Senior General Manager – Marketing at Red Chief, has approached this moment as an exercise in extending the brand’s core rather than reinventing it.
“This has been the journey of our brand,” Sharma said. “For the last 30 odd years, we have never taken shortcuts in making any product. We have never taken shortcuts.”
That thinking has shaped how the brand has attempted to evolve beyond its ‘tough and rugged’ image into a more contemporary, lifestyle-driven space. Instead of creating a disconnect between past and present, the campaign has tried to build a bridge.
“It is not just a small activation,” he said. “It is for a long term, a long direction.”
The choice of Ayushmann Khurrana has also been rooted in this continuity of values. “The moment we shared the idea with him, he got very emotional,” Sharma said. “He said he understands that we don’t take shortcuts, that we are consistent, we work hard, and resilience is in us.”
In a category where celebrity endorsements often blur into a familiar blur of faces and fleeting recall, Red Chief has chosen to root its narrative in something more enduring than visibility. For Ayushmann Khurrana, the campaign has not just been a script, but a reflection of his own journey. “He (Ayushmann Khurrana) spoke about starting out from Chandigarh, about the rejections, the uncertainty, and the long road it took to get where he is,” Sharma said, adding, “He has never taken shortcuts in real life.”
While the campaign sets the narrative, the numbers reveal where the brand is heading. “70% of our marketing investment, we are going to do on sneakers and sports shoes,” Sharma said, signalling a decisive shift toward a younger, more style-conscious audience.
“There was a demand from the consumer,” he noted. “We have just introduced sports shoes, and we have got a very good response.”
At the same time, the brand has been careful not to alienate its existing base. “Our leather legacy is not going to be all of a sudden shifted somewhere,” he said. “There will be a proper balance. Transformation will happen with time.”
This balancing act is visible in its channel strategy as well. As digital continues to dominate, Red Chief has focused on consistent visibility across e-commerce platforms to tap into growth from Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets. “Anyone who goes to Amazon or Flipkart, if they click for any shoe, they will see Red Chief,” Sharma said.
Quick commerce, despite its rapid adoption, has been treated more as a utility than a growth lever. “We are already there on Zepto and Blinkit,” he said. “We do not invest too much, you just need to have your presence out there.”
“It is a very planned purchase,” Sharma said, explaining why urgency-led platforms do not necessarily align with footwear buying behaviour.
Looking ahead, the brand has started building capabilities for a more digital-first consumer journey. “We are working on AI-driven trials,” he said. “Maybe another six to eight months, we will see it across.”
Influencer marketing has also become an increasingly important part of the mix. “Last two years, we have focused on influencer marketing,” Sharma said. “It is on the rise, and it will keep on increasing for us.”
The shift reflects a broader change in how the brand approaches content and engagement. “We used to use models in shoots,” he noted. “Now we have started using influencers because the kind of content they are creating is more engaging.”
Even as formats and categories evolve, the product strategy has stayed anchored in familiar strengths. “Quality we will maintain,” Sharma said. “Now we want to give comfort to our consumers. Comfort is the main USP of our product.”
That consistency has extended to how the brand has entered the sneaker space itself. “We could have done this 15 years ago,” Sharma said. “But we thought whenever we bring it, we will bring a good product. No shortcuts.”
In a market driven by speed, Red Chief’s marketing shift has not been about catching up quickly, but about expanding deliberately, taking a legacy built over decades and making it relevant for a consumer that expects both credibility and style.
