The proposed project will entail an investment of nearly Rs 150 crore by the Delhi-based company to cover land cost, development cost and the rental to be paid to DMRC. The land has been leased from Delhi Metro for 50 years.
“The retail area around the metro station gets the benefit of foot traffic generated by the metro system. In Delhi, getting land in a prime area is difficult, and most of the upcoming development is on the land auctioned by the DMRC,” said Bansal.
Additionally, the company will lease about 50,000 sq ft of retail space at two metro stations in NCR.
Unity Group has also entered into an agreement with Parsvnath group to jointly develop 450,000 sq ft of retail space with an investment of Rs 200 crore. The proposed bridge-to-luxury mall will come up near Netaji Subhash Place metro station and will be operational by the end of this year.
“This mall will be operational by the end of this year, while our mall in Mohali will also become operational in the next three months,” Bansal said. “The bounce back of retail has encouraged us to increase our portfolio.”
He said Unity Group will also expand its retail space offering in the coming years, including mall developments in Preet Vihar, Mangalam, Rohini and Punjabi Bagh in Delhi, and Mohali in Punjab. The company is also in the process of expanding its six operational malls as part of the extra FAR allowed by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA).
According to a report by Cushman & Wakefield, India’s top three cities will require 9 million sq ft of retail space every year till 2027 to match the level of organised retail space available in a small country like Vietnam.
India adds about 3.8 million sq ft of retail space each year, with developers mostly focusing on office and residential assets.
The report suggests creating Grade A retail spaces as international brands are increasingly showing interest in India.
Unity Group, which also operates Dwarka’s Vegas mall, is set to add 1–1.2 million sq ft of retail space in the next few years.
