What makes Mumbai a thriving business destination for franchisors

Mumbai is one the largest cities in India; it has the largest population and the highest GDP. It accounts for 70% of the country’s capital transactions. The Alpha World City is headquarters to some of the leading franchise brands. The city is home to some important financial institutions like the Reserve Bank of India, the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange. No wonder, Mumbai is ranked as the fastest growing cities in India for business expansion. Let us understand why franchisors are keen to expand in Mumbai.

Organised retail space
Franchisors are bullish about the organised retail space offered by malls in Mumbai, given the low penetration of organised retail, improving mall management, as well as the opportunity to list retail assets under Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). Mumbai, which houses the first mall in the country, has a total organised retail stock of 8.72 million square feet and will witness 11.26 million square feet of new retail development over the next three years. Main streets of Lower Parel, Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) and Linking Road are witnessing active leasing from retailers in the F&B and apparel segments. While the size of the consumer market in the city is particularly large, the pace of retail real estate development has outgrown the organised retail business over the last four to five years.

Opportunities galore at Mumbai
Danish luxury furniture maker BoConcept, which entered India through its franchise Zoe Concepts, is looking at opening a store in Mumbai. “We are trying to pick up pace of opening stores. For big centres, we will have flagship stores, while for smaller centres, the firm may tie up with multi-brand stores. Flagship stores will be spread over 350 to 500 square metres, depending on the locations, while the brand stores will occupy 100 to 250 square metres,” said Zoe Concepts Director, Navin Khanna.

Aero Club, manufactures and retailers of Woodland, is also trying to popularise the hi-fashion formal luxury brand Woods in India. "We have already opened two stores in Delhi. Now, we are looking for space in Mumbai,” shares Harkirat Singh, Managing Director, Aero Club.

Spotlight for growth
Yum Brands Inc recently opened its 9,000th restaurant outside the US in Mumbai. Kishore Bajaj expanded its group portfolio of international franchises by launching Nara Thai restaurant of Bangkok in Mumbai. Karan Behal, Founder and CEO, PrettySecrets, explains, “Mumbai is India’s commercial and entertainment capital. The biggest advantage is that the city has the largest population and the highest GDP. There’s a massive diversity of people in this city - people from all walks of life, all strata of society and hence there’s immense opportunity basis different target segments. There’s an influx of people from not just all over the country, but slowly all over the world in Mumbai, which is what lays the base for a variety of opportunities. The city also accounts for more than 70% of the country’s capital transactions adding to the incentive for potential investors/franchisors.”