Delhi-NCR retail leasing rises 45% in Q1 as fashion and F&B fuel demand

Retail space leasing in Delhi-NCR increased 45% in Q1, with fashion and food-and-beverage brands driving occupier interest, according to the scouted report.

— FiledSun, 26 Jul, 2026, 09:03 IST·First seen Sun, 26 Jul, 2026, 09:03 IST·Source Financial Express · BrandWagon

What happened

Delhi-NCR retail market · Retail space leasing in Delhi-NCR rose 45% in Q1, with fashion and food-and-beverage occupiers driving demand for retail real estate.

Key facts

  • 45% increase
  • Q1

Why this matters

Strong fashion and F&B-led leasing suggests Delhi-NCR is becoming a higher-priority expansion and partnership market, particularly for concepts that can secure prime locations early.

What to watch

  • Quarterly net absorption versus gross leasing, which will show whether activity is expansionary or mainly relocations and renewals.
  • Prime rent growth, rent-free periods and revenue-share terms across Gurgaon, South Delhi, Noida and Greater Noida.
  • New mall completions, retail-area handovers and redevelopment announcements over the next 12-24 months.
  • Same-store sales growth for apparel, beauty, QSR, cafes and casual dining brands.
  • Vacancy trends and store closures in older malls and secondary high streets.
  • Consumer discretionary-spending indicators, inflation, household-credit conditions and monsoon-related footfall disruption.
  • Fashion chains prioritize larger flagship formats and cluster expansion near premium malls, metro-linked high streets and affluent residential catchments.
  • F&B operators seek compact, high-turnover units while negotiating revenue-share structures to offset elevated fixed rents.
  • Mall owners rebalance tenant mixes toward food, entertainment, beauty, athleisure and experiential retail to lift dwell time and sales productivity.
  • Landlords increase redevelopment, vacancy consolidation and asset upgrades to create larger contiguous spaces for anchor and international brands.
  • Retailers become more selective on unit economics, using sales-per-square-foot thresholds before committing to secondary locations.