Delhi-NCR retail leasing jumps 45% in Q1 as fashion and F&B demand accelerates
Delhi-NCR leased 0.59 million sq ft of retail space in Q1 2026, up from 0.41 million sq ft a year earlier. Malls captured 64% of activity, with the region accounting for 30% of leasing across India’s top eight cities despite a 10% nationwide decline.
What happened
Delhi-NCR retail market · Delhi-NCR retail leasing rose 45% year-on-year in Q1 2026 to 0.59 million sq ft, led by fashion and F&B demand. Malls captured 64% of
Key facts
- Delhi-NCR retail leasing rose 45% year-on-year to 0.59 million sq ft in Q1 2026, from 0.41 million sq ft
- Malls accounted for 64% of Delhi-NCR leasing; high streets 36%
- Delhi-NCR held 30% of leasing across India’s top eight cities
- Top-eight-city Q1 leasing fell 10% to 1.95 million sq ft from 2.17 million sq ft
- Eight cities recorded 9.21 million sq ft of retail leasing in calendar 2025
Why this matters
Accelerating fashion and F&B demand in Delhi-NCR creates partnership, acquisition and platform-expansion opportunities around mall-led retail ecosystems.
What to watch
- Quarterly mall occupancy, asking-rent growth and tenant-sales productivity in Gurgaon, Noida, Delhi and Faridabad.
- Share of leasing accounted for by fashion and F&B versus beauty, electronics, entertainment and services.
- New Grade A mall completions, redevelopment launches and pre-leasing levels through 2026-27.
- Restaurant closures, store-opening delays and discounting intensity after the festive and year-end trading periods.
- Consumer spending indicators for affluent NCR households, including discretionary categories, dining-out frequency and credit-card spend.
- Prioritize pipeline sites in dominant destination malls and mixed-use centers with proven weekend footfall rather than leasing broadly across the region.
- Secure options on adjacent or upcoming mall inventory before rents reset; negotiate phased openings, fit-out support and turnover-linked rent structures.
- Use Delhi-NCR as a flagship and omnichannel fulfillment market, pairing experiential mall stores with smaller neighborhood pickup or service formats.
- Benchmark fashion and F&B competitors’ announced openings by catchment to identify saturation risk before committing to multi-store clusters.