Pune Mall Mania

Pune's mall frenzy has reached a state where it could cost dear to retailers and real estate companies pumping money in setting up these swanky places which are turning into more of a recreational place to hang out, rather than actually promoting actual sales for shops leasing places at an expensive price.

Consider eastern belt of the city and you can note the actual distance at which these malls are located defies any commercial logic. These malls are located near Yerwada - Kalyani Nagar - Koregaon Park - Viman Nagar.

1) Ishanya Mall - Pulse Mall (2.5 km)

2) Pulse Mall - Phoenix Market City (1.9 km)

3) Phoenix Market City - Inorbit Mall (700 mts)

4) Jewel Square Mall - Koregaon Park Plaza (3.1 Kms)

5) Koregaon Park Plaza - Mariplex Mall (1.5 Kms)

Few years back Mariplex Mall was the only mall in this area and the rate at which malls have swelled goes to prove retailers and real estate companies would have sensed a potential for business which is not the case as per a recent Assocham report Pune's 42% mall space is still vacant.

Vendors like Croma electronics, Reliance book and digital store outlet, Spencer have closed shops and moved between these places maybe as a part of consolidation strategy, with so many options nearby it's eventually causing consumer fragmentation and malls purely survive on hypermarket, dining or pub outlets and multiplex presence with no significant value add for the consumers beyond these categories. In fact there are many well established restaurants in most areas of the city which do not require a mall presence.

Many of these malls have got on to social media platforms to attract visitors by organising weekend event's and contests etc. Apart from Phoenix Market City and Inorbit mall I doubt other malls are actually succeeding in retaining vendors or attracting shopper volumes, In fact Pulse mall is probably on the verge of closing shutters.

Some concentration of malls at M.G Road is still a better deal because as a location it offer's proximity to the  local shopping outlets which are already existing along with the malls. What Pune also lacks is a shopper's paradise like Manish market, Heera Panna in Mumbai, Nehru Palace, Palika Bazaar in Delhi etc. Maybe traditional spots in Peth area and Laxmi road bazaar could evolve in future to be such shopping destination for Pune.

For now I think mall mania should pause for some time to see how retail market develops in Pune.

E-Commerce in India at crucial crossroads

A country with huge potential for exponential growth in e-commerce market is heading towards an unknown cliff which could lead to the collapse of this structure causing the entire hard work put in by brands which are still struggling to break even, go in vain. No one has pressed the panic button yet, however symptoms are showing up evidently now.

It's difficult to even keep a track of how many so called e-commerce brands are now opening online doors and shutting shop in India. Consumer durables and electronics laid the foundation of this shopping revolution, which sprawled across fashion, apparel, footwear, personal care etc. I have personally noticed that some portals are the right place to order products which maybe not available in India directly to purchase, niche products that may not find a place at the retail outlets are easy to buy online.

However when it comes to meeting consumer expectation on timely and safe delivery these portals are struggling to manage the game of logistics which is putting a heavy pressure on their margins and probably elongating their break even period further, making angel fund investor's backing such portals anxious and owners are finding it difficult to raise fresh round of funding at times.

In a crowd of approximately 1900 online retail portals, here's a look at an info graphic on Indian e-commerce market, also at an article from livemint.com which explains the current state of this industry.

Sad state of electronics chain stores in Pune

Pune is touted to be a fast growing IT hub that has placed the city amongst an important destination for retail sector to take note of. When i settled in Pune from Mumbai by the end of year 2004, The eastern corridor in the city was nowhere close to development and it was then the outskirts of Pune city. As the city grew and expanded it has now become the most happening spot in the city and this area of the city came to limelight nationally post the Pune German Bakery bomb blast incident.

A lot of major retail groups set up their shops in this area of the city which now has a host of malls, as a electonics and gadgets enthusiast i always knew Pune definately could not match the charm of Lamington road in Mumbai when it came to electronics market, however even it came to buying a simple cable extension and misc electronics need these so called electronics megastores never used to have any and it required me to do some searching in nearby places to get a fixed source for buying or rely on ebay.



Recently Croma electonics closed down their outlet at Ishanya mall and even Dass Electronics has closed few outlets in the city along with a branch at nagar road, if you check their website today it has not even being updated i suppose from last Aug-Sep'10. These stores opened with lot of promises but somehow they could just not afford to pay huge lease amounts on commercial property compared to the sales that may not help them break even over a particular period of time. There were some small time laptop shops too which opened in the fortaleza society vicinity, opposite Gold Big Cinemas even they closed down soon.

The retail story is somewhere not clicking right in Pune, if you are even lucky to find what you need do not expect good after sales service from the stores in malls. Once you are out of the bright and airconditioned atmosphere of the mall with your product you have brought, as a consumer you are history. The so called "IT crowd" is not sufficient to register impressive sales, Pune  has a higher share of student population too which comprises of high footfalls and low spend category that's hurting the growth of retail sector here.
 
Every time i visited Croma or Dass a disinterested or overexcited salesman would come to you suggesting you stuff that you are not seeking, pushing products of some brand that their store is endorsing. At times these sales guys would form their own groups strolling in the store chatting and having a gala time. Same kind of attitude prevails with sales staff at Big Bazaar, Hometown, Lifestyle and Housefull stores which i have visited and experienced.