India retail leasing hits record high in 2024, momentum set to carry into 2025
Fashion, F&B and beauty drove record retail leasing across Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Pune. Grade-A mall supply constraints have pushed vacancies to lows, firming rentals and tilting the market in favour of landlords through 2025.
What happened
India retail real estate · India's retail leasing hit record highs in 2024, led by fashion, F&B, and beauty, with momentum expected to sustain in 2025. Grade-A
Why this matters
Tightening Grade-A supply and surging fashion, F&B, and beauty demand make 2025 a window to secure prime sites via M&A or development before rentals climb further.
What to watch
- Quarterly vacancy and rental data for the six metros
- Grade-A mall completion volumes vs deferred openings
- Same-store sales growth in fashion/F&B/beauty anchors
- Urban discretionary consumption and inflation prints
- Retail REIT leasing spreads and cap-rate movements
- Brands accelerate pre-leasing and lock space in upcoming Grade-A malls to hedge against rising rents
- Developers fast-track mall pipeline and convert mixed-use schemes to capture landlord pricing power
- Retailers shift to revenue-share leases and omnichannel formats to manage rental cost inflation
- REITs and institutional capital increase allocation to retail assets on strengthening yields
- Tier-2 city malls gain attention as metros become rent-saturated