India’s shopping centres are no longer just destinations to buy—they’re destinations to belong. As spaces evolve, so must our imagination
India’s shopping centres are evolving at a dramatic pace. No longer just spaces to transact, malls are now experience engines, cultural arenas, social hubs, and data-driven consumption ecosystems. And that’s the story the industry is coming together to explore and co-author at Shopping Centres Next (SCN) 2025, on July 23–24 in Goa.
Organised by the IMAGES Group, SCN is India’s most influential forum for modern retail real estate stakeholders. This year’s theme, infused throughout the agenda, is a directional question: What’s next for India’s malls?
The answers are emerging from a confluence of trends: rising Tier 2/3 aspirations, the institutionalisation of retail assets, AI-driven retail planning, and a radical redefinition of what it means to be a “mall” in the age of connected commerce.
Let’s explore these shifts through a layered narrative inspired by the SCN 2025 agenda.
- Recode the Mall: Purpose, People, Possibility
In this new era, malls must mean more. The old formula of footfalls and floorplates is giving way to climate-conscious architecture, hyperlocal tenant curation, and human-first design.
Success Story: DLF Avenue Saket redesigned itself from a retail property into a curated social and cultural space, with art installations, pet-friendly zones, open-air courtyards, and a strong emphasis on F&B.
Global Cue: Coal Drops Yard in London redefined mall culture by converting an old industrial warehouse into a high-design retail precinct, where shopping meets storytelling.
Next: India’s future malls will need to prioritise ESG metrics, urban integration, and cultural programming to remain relevant.
- Shared Growth: From Landlords to Partners
The landlord-tenant equation is being rewritten. Malls and retailers are increasingly entering co-risk, co-reward agreements driven by mutual performance and shopper-centricity.
Case Study: LuLu Mall Lucknow partnered with 40+ tenants on a unified mall-wide festival, which increased weekend footfall by 27% and dwell time by 3x.
Case Study: Pacific Malls created a major industry moment by launching the Pacific Festival of Shopping—a multi-city campaign across its properties in Delhi-NCR, Dehradun, and Jaipur. With over ₹2 crore in prize giveaways, curated weekend carnivals, and gamified app integrations for brand discovery, the campaign delivered 30% growth in weekend footfall and heightened brand visibility for over 100 participating retailers.
Innovative Trend: Revenue-share leasing models, combined marketing campaigns, and shared customer data platforms.
What’s Next: Co-created loyalty programs, unified digital wallets, and deeper brand-mall collaborations on experiential retail.
III. Retail as an Asset Class: The Rise of REITs
India’s shopping centres are becoming institutional-grade assets. REITs like Nexus Select Trust are proving that malls can be stable, income-generating platforms.
Nexus Snapshot:
- 19 consumption centres
- 10.6 million sq ft retail GLA
- 130 million footfalls
- 97.2% occupancy
- INR 124 Bn tenant sales (FY24–25)
Next: Expect consolidation of Grade A malls under REITs, more foreign institutional interest, and capital-backed innovation in mall operations.
- Beyond Brick & Mortar: Format to Ecosystem
Today’s shopping centres aren’t just places to buy—they’re ecosystems that blend retail, dining, co-working, health, and culture.
Case Study: Taurus Zentrum, Thiruvananthapuram is India’s first integrated retail destination located inside a tech park. The larger Taurus Downtown development offers over 700,000 sq ft of gross leasable area with retail, potential hospitality space, convention venues, and SEZ/non-SEZ parcels. This pioneering model brings lifestyle and commerce directly into Kerala’s IT corridor, with built-in customer flows from nearby tech campuses and government offices.
Case Study: Avenue Mall @ Texvalley, Erode stands out as South India’s first and largest outlet mall, spanning over 500,000 sq ft within the 2 million sq ft Texvalley textile hub. Developed by Beyond Squarefeet, it fuses wholesale strength with aspirational retail, offering factory outlets, regional fashion brands, local artisans, F&B, and entertainment. Its curated Independence Day launch is set to mark a cultural milestone for Tamil Nadu’s Kongu belt and a new benchmark in Tier 3 retail transformation.
Case Study: Phoenix Malls activated a mall-wide digital-first experience at Phoenix Mall of Asia in Bengaluru with QR-based rewards, influencer-led soft launches, and a cultural calendar featuring car rallies, stand-up comedy shows, and art installations. The launch phase saw over 20 million digital impressions and a 40% spike in weekday footfall compared to projections.
Global Benchmark: Westfield Century City, LA offers valet parking, rooftop lounges, digital concierge, and event programming to enhance lifestyle relevance.
Next: Mixed-use destinations will dominate; malls will function like mini-cities.
- Connected Commerce: From Browsers to Buyers
Digital and physical are no longer distinct spheres. Today’s consumer expects to browse online, touch offline, pay anywhere, and receive products everywhere.
Example: Inorbit’s e-Shop initiative lets consumers shop from their favourite mall brands online and pick up in store or opt for delivery.
Global Trend: Malls offering smart parking, AR navigation, mobile POS, and in-mall app integrations.
Next: Shopping centres as omnichannel fulfillment hubs; QR-led discovery in physical aisles; embedded online-to-offline triggers.
- Reviving the Empty: Activating Underperforming Zones
Vacant zones hurt more than just revenue; they impact shopper perception. Leading malls are responding with creative reuse and short-format experimentation.
Example: DLF Promenade’s Pop Box model cycles through emerging D2C brands every 30 days, bringing freshness to underused spaces.
Next: Expect test zones, pop-up culture, influencer collaborations, and rotating themes to bring vibrancy back to quieter pockets.
VII. Move the Market: Shared Consumer Strategy
Malls and brands are no longer separate storytellers. Together, they must script narratives that connect emotionally and culturally.
Example: Quest Mall Kolkata curates regional food festivals, Bengali indie cinema screenings, and local art to build deep cultural resonance.
Trend: Brands creating mall-exclusive SKUs, storytelling-led visual merchandising, and mall-wide thematic events.
Next: Mall as cultural platform—one that inspires, not just sells.
VIII. The AI Advantage: Precision-Led Planning
AI is transforming how shopping centres are built, leased, and managed. From catchment analysis to predictive leasing and tenant rotation, data is now the key tenant.
Use Case: Inorbit Malls, in partnership with Waysahead Global, uses AI to predict catchment trends, plan tenant mix, and adjust lease durations.
Next: Expect AI-driven mall layouts, heatmaps for dwell zone optimisation, and even tenant scoring models.
- Retail Architecture as Urban Catalyst
Malls are increasingly shaping not just consumption but the very fabric of cities. Architecture, urban design, and placemaking are becoming key mall strategies.
Case Study: Phoenix High Street Phoenix in Mumbai transformed a former textile mill compound into a mixed-use precinct, combining luxury retail, hospitality, residential towers, and cultural venues. It now anchors the city’s most dynamic commercial district.
Next: Future malls will co-develop infrastructure with city planners, offer transit integration, and invest in open, programmable public spaces.
Conclusion: From Next to Infinite
Shopping Centres Next is more than a theme—it’s a mandate. India’s malls are standing at the edge of reinvention, with infinite possibilities ahead.
As developers, retailers, REITs, architects, and tech platforms gather at SCN 2025, they’re not just discussing the future of malls. They are, in fact, building it.
The next era of shopping centres isn’t about more space. It’s about more meaning, more collaboration, and more imagination.
Because Shopping Centres Next… means Shopping Centres Better.
Agenda link: https://www.shoppingcentresnext.com/agenda-2025/
Speakers link: https://www.shoppingcentresnext.com/speakers-2025/
The post What’s next for India’s malls? appeared first on India Retailing.
from India Retailing https://ift.tt/Y7sJIGQ
via IFTTT
Comments
Post a Comment