oppn parties Ghost Malls: Bleak Future

News Snippets

  • The Indian envoy in Bangladesh was summoned by the country's government over the breach in the Bangladesh mission in Agartala
  • Bank account to soon have 4 nominees each
  • TMC and SP stayed away from the INDIA bloc protest over the Adani issue in the Lok Sabha
  • Delhi HC stops the police from arresting Nadeem Khan over a viral video which the police claimed promoted 'enmity'. Court says 'India's harmony not so fragile'
  • Trafiksol asked to refund IPO money by Sebi on account of alleged fraud
  • Re goes down to 84.76 against the USD but ends flat after RBI intervenes
  • Sin goods like tobacco, cigarettes and soft drinks likely to face 35% GST in the post-compensation cess era
  • Bank credit growth slows to 11% (20.6% last year) with retail oans also showing a slowdown
  • Stock markets continue their winning streak on Tuesday: Sensex jumps 597 points to 80845 and Nifty gains 181 points to 24457
  • Asian junior hockey: Defending champions India enter the finals by beating Malaysia 3-1, to play Pakistan for the title
  • Chess World title match: Ding Liren salvages a sraw in the 7th game which he almost lost
  • Experts speculate whether Ding Liren wants the world title match against D Gukesh to go into tie-break after he let off Gukesh easily in the 5th game
  • Tata Memorial Hospital and AIIMS have severely criticized former cricketer and Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu for claiming that his wife fought back cancer with home remedies like haldi, garlic and neem. The hospitals warned the public for not going for such unproven remedies and not delaying treatment as it could prove fatal
  • 3 persons died and scores of policemen wer injured when a survey of a mosque in Sambhal near Bareilly in UP turned violent
  • Bangladesh to review power pacts with Indian companies, including those of the Adani group
Devendra Fadnavis to be the next chief minister of Maharashtra after Eknath Shinde agrees to join the government as deputy CM
oppn parties
Ghost Malls: Bleak Future

By Linus Garg
First publised on 2024-05-10 06:30:09

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.

Are many malls in India, following the worldwide trend, going to seed? A report by real estate consulting firm Knight Frank, titled "Think India, Think Retail 2024" found that although there was marked improvement in leased space in Grade A and some improvement in the same in Grade B malls, Grade C malls were going to seed, forcing developers to think of demolishing for redevelopment or auctioning them after closing them permanently.

According to the report, there has been a surge of 59% in ghost shopping malls, or malls where leasable space remains unoccupied. But this is happening mostly in Grade C properties as brands on expansion mode are ignoring them for Grade B and more often for Grade A properties. This has meant that while the latter two are performing well, the former is losing out heavily.

Knight Frank says that Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru reported an increase in leased shopping space while Hyderabad showed a small decline. But even in these four cities, some malls, which are not positioned well, are showing signs of decay and lower footfalls and lesser conversions are pushing them to the brink of closure.

With online shopping eating into the sales of stores and customers preferring to visit Grade A malls more often, Grade C malls are facing a tough time. It also depends on anchor stores, multiplex and food options, apart from entertainment zones and ease of access. Since all malls look the same and have almost the same brands vying for attention, the larger, well-planned malls have a head start in this regard and those who cannot provide a complete experience to the consumers are increasingly becoming irrelevant.

The scenario as it is unfolding proves that people are visiting malls for a complete experience which includes shopping with large anchor stores, food and entertainment. Any mall that misses these tricks is looking at a bleak future.