Ashok K.JhaMall mania has gripped Bihar
April 28th 2008 13:07
Patna, with a population of around 1.8 million is firmly set on the radar of nearly all major retailers.Glitzy air-conditioned shopping malls like Vishal Mega Mart and Nine to Nine Super Markets have grabbed the fancy of new-age shoppers with promises to transform the mundane shopping activity into a pleasurable experience. Developers are vying with each other to churn out retail infrastructure that compares with the best in the country. Film-maker Prakash Jha ,whose upcoming shopping mall and multiplex is ready to set new benchmarks in retail and entertainment,must be applauded for his courage because he took the initiative to invest in the state when there was a huge outflow of capital from the state due to law and order problem. The sprawling one-acre mall is being designed by a famous architect of Mumbai.
Another realty firm, Rishavnath Developers, is set to foray into construction of mega retail stores in the state. The owner of Rishavnath Suresh Singh says, "Growing untapped consumer markets in the city has made it a preferred destination for investment by leading real estate players for exploring the retail business opportunities." Asish Ranjan Jha, another real estate developer says, "Patna has no dearth of land. It is expanding rapidly. I intend to venture into a speciality mall on the outskirts soon."
Pankaj Kumar, a leading architect who graduated from Mumbai's prestigious JJ School of Arts, has a number of mall designs on his drawing board. "My hands are full. Wait a couple of years and you'll see a new skyline in Patna," he said.
The reason for the spiralling interest of mega-brands like Reliance, Airtel, Piramals, Tatas and ITC, fast-food chains like McDonalds, Moti Mahal, Kapil's Eleven, Smoking Jones, Pizza Hut, bigwigs in the apparel industry like Pantaloons, Blackberry, Lee, Provogue, Peter England and Woodland is obvious. It is fuelled by rising middle-class earnings, success of early retail format developments in the past three-four years and availability of reasonably priced real estate options.
According to research papers published by another leading economist and a keen market watcher Ajita Sinha ,investments in the retail sector are pegged at Rs 100-250 crore in the next two-three years. And it is the real estate boom — the mushrooming of malls — that will script this retail story. While there are only five malls now, 10 are in the pipeline with several more on the drawing board.
Pankaj Kumar, a leading architect who graduated from Mumbai's prestigious JJ School of Arts, has a number of mall designs on his drawing board. "My hands are full. Wait a couple of years and you'll see a new skyline in Patna," he said.
The reason for the spiralling interest of mega-brands like Reliance, Airtel, Piramals, Tatas and ITC, fast-food chains like McDonalds, Moti Mahal, Kapil's Eleven, Smoking Jones, Pizza Hut, bigwigs in the apparel industry like Pantaloons, Blackberry, Lee, Provogue, Peter England and Woodland is obvious. It is fuelled by rising middle-class earnings, success of early retail format developments in the past three-four years and availability of reasonably priced real estate options.
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Comment by Mountain Fog
Infognito
Malls are an absolute curse!!
They drive small operators out of business, they make the public, at first, feel like they are "coming up in the world", when in fact, in time, your wallets empty into fewer hands, for fewer goods, at a greater price!
Then the mall owners become billionaires...like one in OZ here, and the shop renters, in the malls, get screwed slowly for more and more rent.
Ban the malls, they are destructive to society on so many levels!!
cheers
fog