India retail leasing hit 8.9m sq ft in 2025 as mixed-use demand builds
India’s retail and commercial real estate markets are increasingly converging around mixed-use projects. Retail leasing reached about 8.9 million sq ft in 2025, led by fashion, F&B and experiential brands, while GCCs accounted for more than 40% of Grade A office leasing.
What happened
India retail and commercial real estate sector · India’s retail and commercial property markets are converging into mixed-use developments, supported by record
Key facts
- Retail leasing: about 8.9 million sq. ft. in 2025
- GCCs: over 40% of Grade A office leasing
Why this matters
Target partnerships or acquisitions that add experiential, food-service or fashion capabilities suited to mixed-use destinations alongside GCC-led office clusters.
What to watch
- Quarterly Grade A office absorption and GCC leasing share in Delhi NCR mixed-use micro-markets.
- Retail lease renewal spreads, occupancy costs and revenue-share collections at prime malls versus secondary assets.
- New retail completions and pre-commitment rates for mixed-use projects scheduled for 2026-2028.
- Metro expansion, road connectivity and residential handover timelines around leasing hotspots.
- F&B and entertainment store closures, fit-out delays and consumer discretionary-spending trends.
- Policy or financing changes affecting commercial real-estate development and REIT participation.
- Prioritize NCR mixed-use projects with committed office occupancy, residential catchments and metro or arterial-road access.
- Use flexible lease structures for F&B and experiential tenants, combining minimum guarantees with turnover-linked rent and staged fit-out support.
- Rebalance tenant mixes toward daily-needs, food, beauty, wellness and entertainment to monetize weekday office footfall as well as weekend family traffic.
- Acquire or reposition underperforming retail assets near emerging GCC clusters into food, services, outlet or experience-led formats.
- Track whether fashion-led leasing translates into store productivity rather than merely network expansion.