It's raining shopping malls in India
Monday, 11 August 2003, 19:30 IST
Printer Print Email Email
NEW DELHI: International style shopping has finally come to India -- and with a splash. The decade-old economic reforms have engendered a new, shop-till-you-drop breed of middle class Indians who, having tasted the shopping experience of big cities overseas, have fuelled a demand that was inevitable -- the rise of the shopping malls. Long used to shopping in crummy shops manned by perfunctory and often grumpy salespersons, millions of Indians are now discovering a new way to hunt for bargains, and spend time with family --- shopping malls. And to cash in on the boom, giant malls are coming up thick and fast in and around New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata and other major cities that is set to completely transform the $200 billion Indian retail sector. Little surprise then that 200 large malls are in planning or construction stage across the country. And cashing in on the sudden resurgence of interest in shopping in India, big corporate houses and realtors such as the Tatas, Piramals, Rahejas, Sahara, DLF and RPG Enterprises are racing to revolutionise the Indian retail industry and fuel a construction boom. Multi-storied air-conditioned buildings housing restaurants, multiplexes, clothing and electronic shops, coffee kiosks, and fast food joints are giving popular family entertainment addresses a run for their money. On the weekends, these malls are choc-a-bloc with zippy cars and chirpy teenagers in Western outfits as well as families. No family outing or dating itinerary is now complete without a visit to one of these malls that are of international standards. Three upmarket malls, situated within a distance of a kilometre in Gurgaon on the outskirts of New Delhi, house everything under one roof -- departmental stores, food and beverage outlets, electronics showroom, lifestyle goods and multiplexes. Though roads leading to the malls are in an appalling condition, these halogen and neon-lit huge steel, chrome and glass structures house some of the best names in retail chains such as Shopper's Stop, Lifestyle, Subway, Pizza Hut, and Mark and Spencer. The shopping malls -- DLF City Centre, The Metropolitan and Big Bazaar, around Delhi, Crossroads and R-Mall in Mumbai, and Spencer's in Chennai -- are changing the way middle-class Indians shop. "When I enter into one of these malls it feels like I have landed in a foreign country," says banker Amit Kumar, a regular at the DLF City Centre, a 250,000 square feet mall. "With fully air-conditioned stores, escalators and quality service, it's almost like any international mall." Shoppers like Kumar are among the droves of middle-class Indians who have broken off their love with the traditional dingy stand-alone Indian stores that have no air conditioning, organised parking, and other public amenities. "Thanks to a boom in the shopping mall business, shopping for average Indian has now become an international experience," said Pushpendra Sharma of C.B. Richard Ellis, a global real estate consultancy major. "Today a customer pays greater attention to product availability, display, in-store service and of course, the ease of shopping," Sharma told IANS. "Indian families are also looking at entertainment as an escape. Entertainment is equated with shopping, food, and options like cinemas and bowling alleys. And since malls combine all these factors, they are witnessing a boom." The New Delhi-based Ansal Properties is expected to come up with five new malls in north India within the next three years. The group already has two malls - one each in New Delhi and neighbouring Faridabad. "We offer a completely different shopping experience and comfort in malls," said Pradeep Seth, executive president of Ansal Properties, a developer of shopping malls in India. In Mumbai, with such a large number of malls opening up entrepreneurs are already segmenting themselves to survive in the event of a shakeout. While Crossroads has gone upmarket with a vengeance with brands like Piaget watches, couturiers like Mango, Boss and Marks and Spencer and De beers diamonds, others are targeting the mass market. The city is expected to have 40 malls by next year offering more than two million square feet of retail space. "It's a fun place to spend our weekends," says collegian Sharma, who doesn't mind travelling 35 km by train from her home in suburban Borivli to her favourite shopping mall, the Piramal-owned Crossroads at Tardeo in central Mumbai. Similarly, a rash of departmental stores like Westside and Shoppers' Stop, which are seeing a boom in business, are forming the nucleus of new malls that are coming up in the metros and spawning a wholly new middle class sub-culture. Says Divya Goswami, a New Delhi housewife: "The best thing about these malls is the convenience of shopping they offer. "There is no parking chaos that normally puts you off in a regular shopping arcade and no jostling and shoving for space. "And you don't have to go abroad to experience the joys of shopping."
Source: IANS
siliconindia