Picture this: a home with a panoramic view of Mumbai city, furnished with Armani products, a concierge service at your beck and call and your neighbours are the who’s who of the corporate world. All for “just” Rs 12 crore: Your very own “branded” home.
It is geared towards that segment of India’s super-rich that prefer the convenience and snob value of luxury homes, designed, marketed and often managed by global hospitality or signature designer brands, says Anuj Puri, chairman & country head, Jones Lang LaSalle India. “At the same time, there is another set of Indian HNIs who place greater equity in location than on designer brand value.”
According to a recent Kotak Wealth and CRISIL report, there were 81,000 households in 2011-12 with a networth of at least Rs 25 crore. Though they form a mere 0.03 per cent of the total number of households in the country, the number will only increase, says the report.
| WHY BUY A BRANDED HOUSE |
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Real estate developers are hardly letting that opportunity slip by and are tying up with lifestyle or hospitality brands. For example, the Lodha Group has roped in fashion designer Giorgio Armani’s interior design studio, Armani Casa, for its ambitious ‘World One’ project in Mumbai. Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons, Starwood Group, Carlson Hotels and a host of Indian developers, such as Nitesh Estates and Oberoi Realty are betting big on branded residences in the country
R Karthik, chief marketing officer, Lodha Group says World One is open to only a select few. “We handpick a select few and send invites across to people who we think would be interested in buying the property.”
Sunteck Realty plans to launch Disney-themed residences in its Sunteck City project in the Goregaon West area of Mumbai, wherein the houses will have Disney branded furnishing, home décor products, colour palettes and bath fittings in kids’ rooms.
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Four Seasons is doing two such projects, with Westcourt in Bangalore and in Mumbai with the Jatia family. US-based Trump Organisation has already tied up with Mumbai-based Rohan Lifespaces to launch Trump-branded residences in South Mumbai.
As for prices, a basic three-bedroom, 3,000 sq ft apartment in the World Towers start at Rs 12 crore and a mansion (duplexes with a 360-degree view of the city) costs a whopping Rs 100 crore. The Disney homes cost between Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 3 crore.
If one were to compare the price of a non-branded house in similar areas, the cost is almost similar to a branded home. Take for example, a three-bedroom, 2,625 sq ft apartment in RNA Miraj (RNA Corp) in Worli. Its price tag is around Rs 11 crore. In Goregoan, you will get a non-branded property around the same range as the Disney-Sunteck branded residence. The average price in this area is around Rs 2.7 crore (for a 2,000 sq ft apartment). According to Magicbricks, a three-bedroom apartment at Lodha Fiorenza is Rs 2.32 crore.
So, what does one get, other than the accompanied snob value? These homes come with facilities, such as sports complex, pools for individual houses, spa, café, concert halls and the like. In fact, super-luxury homes are more like hotels than houses.
Lodha’s Karthik says there are many things that one gets in branded homes, that are not available in a non-branded one. For example, interiors that are designed by designers that the developer has tied up with. “Right from the minutest details, such as the tiles, to kitchen fixtures, to furniture to bath tubs. They are all designed by the fashion house,” says Karthik.
The Lodha Fiorenza project, for instance, boasts signature design by Jade Jagger, the daughter of rock star Mick Jagger. It is expected to provide residents with the finest in “fashionable living”. Each home will be fitted with the latest specifications, including lighting and sound controls by iPad, as well as cantilevered swimming pool and also a rooftop club.
Included in the price of these branded homes are the fixtures and so on, which otherwise one will have to import. The likes of Armani and Disney do not have stores in the country. Buying each item individually, will not only be tedious but importing them would cost one much more.
In the case of tie-ups with hospitality chains such as Westcourt’s Cityview in Bangalore, you get a 24-hour concierge service and valet parking. You can even have your say in the interior designing of the your apartment. All residents will be able to enjoy the hotel’s paid services, such as room service, limousines, apartment cleaning services or even supermarket shopping and delivery.
As expected, the maintenance costs of these branded homes would be higher than that of a non-branded one. “With the kind of services that one gets along with the branded homes, the maintenance costs will come at a premium. But for the sort of clientele that buys these homes, it is not a concern,” explains Reema Kundnani, vice president, marketing and communications, Oberoi Realty.
Anand Narayanan, national director— residential services, Knight Frank, says that there is a brand and quality that is promised with a joint venture like this. “For example, if you know that a Hilton or an Armani is associated with the project it stands for a certain quality of the finished product. Luxury homes today are more about making a lifestyle statement. High-end specifications coupled with designer fit-outs and high-tech gadgets of global standards are the driving factors. You will know that the finished product you get will be of a certain standard that you are not promised in a non-branded product.”