NRI Real Estate: a slew of new space-efficient malls in India

Malls in India are fast rising in prominence as the destination of premium products of famous international brands. The seven large cities – NCR of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune are the forerunners of the mall revolution in the country and has certainly caught the attention of the NRI diaspora, for their ingenuity and standards.

Out of a total 361 expected mall projects in the country, a formidable
number are in the top seven cities while the rest spill over to smaller
towns like Chandigarh, Jaipur, Lucknow and Indore. To NRIs and Indians
abroad as well as a new class of consumers from the booming service
sector which endorses NRI ideas of high disposable income and spending,
the stupendous growth of the mall culture in the country is inspiring.

This trend has set off opportunities for real estate developers for
creating malls in all the new townships that are being developed today.

Going by the remarkable scale of NRI
Investment in India, real estate
developers are including elements that are relatable to the expatriate
population, Indians overseas and NRIs moving to India.

Real estate developers
such as DLF Universal, Suncity, Marg Constructions, Omaxe, the Aerens
Group and Ansal have been proactive in adopting a 360 degree approach
while designing their upcoming shopping spaces. Many of the new properties
will be put on lease in a few months.

A bulk of the proposed mall developments in the city suburbs are being
planned as mixed use developments that offer shopping, entertainment,
commercial, hotel and amusement parks.

‘Market Cities’

The ‘market cities’ have been conceived and planned as self-sustainable
ecosystems which will seek to make the most of consumer synergies arising
out of the strategic placement of entertainment spaces, multiplexes, star
hotels, apartment clusters and shopping spaces.

The market cities are currently under development in Mumbai, Chennai,
Bangalore, Pune, Secunderabad and Hyderabad but expected to be fully
operational by 2010.

Cyberabad Market City, located at Hi-Tech City in Hyderabad, to be
developed in a built-up area of 50 lakh square feet is set to start
operations in December 2010.

The high point of the hypermarkets will
be space devoted to home accessories and food within the shopping
space. Multiplexes will cover 5-10 per cent of the total floor space.

Recent Developments:

Research reports of real estate companies indicate a convincing estimate
of over 100 malls and shopping arcades covering approximately 25 million
sq ft built up area in NCR by 2009.

Gurgaon is a good example of this where the malls have taken the
city by storm. MG (Mehrauli Gurgaon) Road has approximately 10
mall developments – either planned or operational.

• Future Group-promoted Kshitij Venture Capital Fund (KVCF) is a Rs
  350-crore real estate asset management fund for retail-focused realty
  development business in the tier II cities and mini metros. The Group
  has materialized its model in the form of its first two malls at Ahmedabad
  and Vadodara to be launched in January next year.
• Kochi which was a subdued retail market may witness a dramatic
  leap in the consumer footfall when a 4.22 lakh square feet
  mall becomes operational in that city in early 2009. This may also be
  replicated in Indore, Lucknow, Mysore, Jaipur and Kolkata with KVCF’s realty success. KVCF has committed a Rs 350-crore corpus towards this end.
• Future Capital Holdings, the financial arm of the Future Group, has 18 properties under development out of which seven will be devoted to ‘market cities’,
  comprising hypermarkets, multiplexes and residential complexes.
• Horizon International Fund is investing heavily in market
  cities, developing areas of 5.38 lakh sq ft and above and
  has committed nearly $230 million (Rs 940 crore) so far.

Photo: Construction Monsoon Ooty Market Nilgiris Aug25 A7CR 07108 by Timothy A. Gonsalves, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.