New Age Sustainable & Cruelty-Free Footwear Brand: PAIO


By Rachit Juneja

June 1, 2021


PAIO is a cruelty-free, sustainable, and conscious India-based footwear brand for men & women. Each product at PAIO is carefully handcrafted by traditional karigars who have inherited & perfected their craft for generations. Additionally, the brand is PETA-approved and vegan-friendly. 

One of the core philosophies behind the genesis of PAIO was to create a platform that provides sustenance to extremely skilled, yet ignored, local artisans. Fast fashion has unfortunately forgotten the magic that traditional Indian karigars can create with their hands. The brand takes great pride in the beautiful products their karigars make, and the positive impact that these choices have on the community and their craft.

Their Spokesperson is Shweta Nimkar who has almost a decade of experience in the fashion & footwear industry along with a family legacy in textiles & sustainability. Shweta is a post-graduate in Design from the Winchester School of Art, UK. She is the Founder & CEO of PAIO. We got in touch with her to learn more about their journey and here’s what we found out:



Tell us about your product category, and why have you chosen this messaging for the brand? How does your brand stand out? 

“Our product category is Footwear and our message is to be Fashionable while also contributing to conserving the environment. PAIO was founded with a single agenda to make versatile footwear using local design inspirations and craftsmanship. Each PAIO pair is carefully handcrafted by some of the most experienced Indian craftsmen who have inherited the art of constructing the perfect pair. The design sensibilities are a combination of modern art & traditional cultures. Another strong focus at PAIO is to create cruelty-free fashion. PAIO is a PETA-approved Vegan footwear brand, committed to using only vegan alternatives to genuine leather & a variety of fabrics such as cotton, hemp, and jute in its collections. 

Other than this, what also Makes PAIO stand out is the option for customers to customize their product according to their needs. Over the years, PAIO has garnered a loyal base of customers worldwide, who cherish ethics just as much as their love for eclectic fashion & design.”

What makes your brand unique, in terms of your influencer marketing initiatives? 

“The brand is highly involved in Influencer marketing. I think what makes us unique is that we don't judge the profiles of 'influencers' or people just by the number of followers they have. Our main focus is always on the content one is creating. So, even if the person has say 5k followers on a platform like Instagram but their aesthetic matches ours and the quality of work is good, we will never hesitate to work with them.”


For a particular campaign, how do you decide on influencer marketing for it? 

“It is very important to understand one's audience and the message that you want to give out. Deciding on influencers becomes easier if you have some ethos and aesthetics to keep in mind.”


How do you leverage the uniqueness of each influencer? 

“We do this by giving them the freedom of creating content. Of course, if required we give them examples or ideas for content if needed, but 99% of the time we tell the influencers to follow their unique aesthetic and make the content that makes sense to both; us and them. Not restricting them with the kind of material we want gives them enough creative space.”


Do you have any long-term associations with influencers? Would you recommend it to other brands in this category? 

“We usually just have 1-2 month-long collaborations with each blogger, post which we then review & renew.

Influencer marketing is very important for digital brand growth and awareness. We would definitely recommend this for other brands.”


What was the role of your media/creative / PR agency in your influencer campaigns? 

“Our PR agency is always on the lookout for new opportunities for the brand, be it in terms of influencer marketing, collaborations. They help set the agency per month and assist in implementing the same.”


How has Covid 19 impacted your market? 

“Each industry has faced challenges and difficulties in the last 1.5 years. It was an unprecedented event and a lot of industries had to overnight create new strategies and business plans.

For us at PAIO, we have faced challenges when it came to manufacturing & labor. With lockdowns across India, deliveries were also challenging.”

What is a recent trend in influencer marketing that you think is here to stay? 

“Since the pandemic hit, a lot of videos started floating on how to make full use of the wardrobe you already have. So, the trend of wearing 1 particular piece in 5 different ways of styling it with a variety of your basic clothes and making it look chic and trendy and fashion is definitely something that I think is here to stay.”

Do you see any innovation coming up in the space of influencer marketing? 

“The mindset of all consumers has changed in this lockdown. A trend that is definitely catching up is sustainability & veganism.”


If you were to summarize your influencer marketing strategy in 1 word, what would it be?

“Dynamic”