Delhi-NCR retail leasing rose 45% in Q1, resurfacing a January 2026 report led by fashion and F&B demand
A January 2026 report showed Delhi-NCR leased 0.59 million sq ft of retail space in January-March 2026, up from 0.41 million sq ft a year earlier. Malls accounted for 64% of activity, while the region captured 30% of leasing across India’s top eight cities.
What happened
Cushman & Wakefield · 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 January-March 2026, from 0.41 million sq ft
- Shopping malls accounted for 64% of Delhi-NCR leasing; high streets accounted for 36%
- Delhi-NCR held a 30% share of leasing across India's top eight cities
- Top-eight-city retail leasing fell 10% to 1.95 million sq ft from 2.17 million sq ft
- Retail leasing across the eight cities totalled 9.21 million sq ft in calendar year 2025
Why this matters
Accelerating fashion and F&B leasing demand creates an opening to secure strategic mall partnerships, portfolio acquisitions, or growth-market joint ventures in Delhi-NCR.
What to watch
- Q2-Q3 net absorption versus gross leasing, including renewal and relocation share.
- Mall vacancy and quoted rent changes in Gurgaon, Noida, Saket, Vasant Kunj and key Delhi high streets.
- Number and size of fashion and F&B store openings following Q1 lease signings.
- Consumer discretionary-spending indicators, restaurant same-store sales and weekend mall footfall.
- New mall supply deliveries and pre-commitment levels across Delhi-NCR.
- Fit-out costs, retailer capex guidance and lease incentive trends.
- Fashion chains prioritize larger-format stores, omnichannel fulfillment capacity and mall clusters with high footfall.
- F&B operators pursue food-court, entertainment-led and transit-adjacent locations while negotiating revenue-share or stepped-rent structures.
- Mall owners raise asking rents for premium storefronts, curate tenant mixes more aggressively and invest in events, dining and family entertainment.
- Retail real-estate developers advance pipeline projects and reposition underperforming assets toward experiential, beauty, athleisure and food-led tenancy.