Pune Malls emerge as hot shopping destinations

Much like the rest of the country, Pune too is in the midst of a retail boom with companies like Pyramid, Shopper's Stop, Pantaloons, Zodiac, Westside, Lifestyle and Globus vying for a piece of the retail action.

There are about 15 new malls coming up and nearly 6 million sq ft of mall space-all of which is expected to be used up by 2006-has been earmarked, according to a survey by Chesterton Meghraj.

With this big-ticket mall culture hitting the great Indian middle class, the days of pure shopping ecstacy seem well and truly over. City retailers now see the inescapable fact that merely stocking big brands doesn't make up for sales.

And the advent of malls, which aspire to enhance consumers' shopping experience, have blurred the line between hotels, multiplexes and food courts, as they as they play all the parts above equally well.

Among the biggest developers in this segment is Pittie Group's 6 lakh-sq-ft mall coming up at the Raja Bahadur Mills Compound near the Pune Railway station that will house a 30,000 sq ft Fame multiplex.

Piramal Holdings's 1 lakh-sq-ft Crossroads Mall will house a five-star hotel and several entertainment options, as will the International Convention Centre at Senapati Bapat Marg. The Kakade City Mall at Kothrud too houses a multiplex.

The arrival of malls is also rearranging the location of economic activity in the city. Laxmi Road, Bund Garden Road, and Senapati Bapat Marg that are close to residential hubs like Kalyani Nagar, Koregaon Park and Magarpatta City are the emerging retail hubs, which look set to catch up with Deccan and MG Road- Pune's traditional high streets.

A forseeable biproduct of this retail boom has been its effect on real estate. Rentals and real estate prices have leapfrogged by 20-25 per cent.

Real estate prices in MG Road and Deccan range from Rs 95,000-1,10,000 while newer localities like Bund Garden, Kothrud and Karve Road command Rs 70,000-80,000 per sq ft.

The going price for land at Nagar Road is Rs 60,000-70,000 per sq ft.

Upcoming Malls

• International Convention Centre - Senapati Bapat Road - 4,00,000
• Raja Bahadur Mills Compound - Pune Railway Station - 6,00,000
• Connaught Place - Bund Garden - 1,50,000
• Pune Central - Bund Garden - 1,00,000
• Magnum - M G Road - 2,00,000
• Nucleus - MG Road - 2,50,000 + 30,000 for mulitplex
• Runwal Universe - University Road - 80,000
• Runwal Gold - Race Course - 2,50,000
• Kakade City Mall- Kothrud - 5,00,000
• Giga Space - Nagar Road - 2,50,000
• West End - Aundh - 5,00,000
• Sinew Hills - Karve Road - 5,00,000
• Ishanya - Nagar Road - 5,50,000

All figures in Rs/sq ft
Source: Chesterton Meghraj