Future of Malls in India


Gone are days when shopping was considered a tiresome experience by some, when you come back home after a long day with handful of shopping bags where you could only get vegetables today, and for about a week or so you have to go to different markets for buying different things: clothes, stationeries, Kitchen and Home appliances, Sports equipments, accessories and the list is endless just like our needs. Welcome, to the new age Air conditioned Malls- which is a one stop shop for all your needs, where there is no sweat and no fatigue for elders and definitely no boredom for the children.

Apart from shopping, the malls these days provide with lot of other advantages over weekly markets or shops in the neighbourhood such as:

• Cinema halls, horror shows outlets

• Hygienic Food courts

• Gaming zones for children, where they can enjoy themselves while their parents shop

• Entertainment/promotional programmes that organize talent shows

• Security guards constantly patrolling the malls

• Parking facilities

• Clean and well maintained toilet facilities

• Reliable and competitive products with, at most places no bargaining for prices

• Internet access

• ATMs

• Credit and debit cards accepted at most places, so no risk of carrying cash (loyalty cards – free gifts)

• Hair salons, florists, and other professional outlets

• Shopping in a safe environment with no vehicles honking or stray animals around

Considering the above merits the future of malls is shining bright. Not only have the real estate ( bldgs & houses next to malls) prices gone up, but also a whole new sector of employment has emerged in sales and marketing due to malls. Soon one would notice high school students and collegians working in the malls during holidays and evenings just like in the western countries.

However, there is a myth that malls usually sell branded products and thus are often expensive, which prohibits most people from buying goods at a regular basis from these malls and is often referred as a window shopping/sightseeing place by them. But this gap is gradually reducing because of the fast growth of the quality conscious Indian population, which has grown 3.22 per cent a year over the past decade, against the overall population growth of 2.13 per cent a year. Although one may argue that malls have taken over street vendors and small shops, but with India‘s population crossing a billion I am sure there is enough room for everyone.

Contemporary, to the earlier belief of early 2000 that the future of malls in India is bleak I strongly disagree and I would thus insist that Globalization has arrived and just like any other field, India is catching up with the rest of world in this one too.