India retail leasing hit a four-year H1 high at 6.27M sq ft, per resurfaced H1 2026 data
Resurfacing figures from H1 2026: organised retail leasing rose 10.5% year on year despite a 64% decline in new mall supply. Domestic retailers accounted for 79.1% of demand, while Mumbai, Delhi NCR and Bengaluru contributed more than 75% of leasing activity.
What happened
JLL India · India’s organised retail market leased a four-year half-year high of 6.27 million sq. ft. in H1 2026 despite a 64% drop in new mall supply. Domestic
Key facts
- Gross leasing: 6.27 million sq. ft. in H1 2026
- Year-on-year leasing growth: 10.5%
- H1 2025 gross leasing: 5.68 million sq. ft.
- Fresh shopping mall supply declined 64% year-on-year
- Domestic retailers' leasing share: 79.1%
- Shopping mall leasing growth: 22.4% year-on-year
- Malls' share of total leasing: 43.1%, versus 38.9% in H1 2025
- Mall vacancy: 11.15%, down 45 basis points from 11.60%
- Mumbai, Delhi NCR and Bengaluru contributed over 75% of leasing
- Mumbai share: 29%; Delhi NCR: 24%; Bengaluru: 23%
- Kolkata leasing growth: 87.3%; Delhi NCR: 75.9%; Mumbai: 69.6%
Why this matters
With domestic retailers driving 79.1% of leasing demand, corporates should prioritize partnerships, acquisitions and expansion platforms that secure differentiated Indian brands and access to top-city locations.
What to watch
- H2 2026 mall completions, project delays and redevelopment announcements.
- Prime mall and high-street rent growth, vacancy rates, lease incentives and renewal spreads in Mumbai, Delhi NCR and Bengaluru.
- Quarterly store-addition plans and same-store-sales trends from leading domestic retail chains.
- The share of leasing from fashion, F&B, beauty, electronics and value-retail categories.
- Consumer discretionary spending, urban employment trends and inflation-driven pressure on retail margins.
- Whether leasing activity broadens beyond the three leading metros into Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai, Ahmedabad and other growth cities.
- Prioritize early renewals and longer lease tenures in top-tier malls before rental resets accelerate.
- Use a hub-and-spoke portfolio: flagship stores in major metros, smaller experience-led or fulfillment-enabled formats in adjacent catchments.
- Negotiate turnover-linked rents, fit-out contributions and exclusivity clauses where landlords retain leverage.
- Screen high-street sites more aggressively as mall availability tightens, with emphasis on parking, frontage, catchment income and delivery access.
- Track store-level sales productivity closely; rising occupancy costs may expose overexpansion among domestic chains.