Ahmedabad registers highest mall vacancy in first quarter of 2013

At 33%, the city's mall vacancy was higher than Pune (25.28%), NCR (15.69%), Mumbai (15.46%) and Bangalore (11.68%)

Scarcity of quality retail availabilities coupled with sluggish transaction activity has resulted in Ahmedabad witnessing the highest mall vacancy of among the top eight cities in the country. At 33 per cent, Ahmedabad's mall vacancy was higher than Pune (25.28 per cent), NCR (15.69 per cent), Mumbai (15.46 per cent) and Bangalore (11.68 per cent), among others for the first quarter of calendar year 2013.

According to Cushman & Wakefield's latest retail report that tapped the top eight cities for the January to March 2013 period, the overall vacancy levels in malls dipped to 15.8 per cent on account sustained leasing action in both main streets and malls. "Scarcity of quality retail availabilities continued to plague the sector resulting in retailers looking at other suburban locations in the city. Prahladnagar's main street is courting growing retailer interest. Malls rentals have remained stable during the quarter, but continued to remain under pressure due to the high vacancy level of 33 per cent," the report by the real estate consulting firm stated.

Whilst sustained demand for quality spaces especially from the food & beverages and apparel sectors has led to positive sentiments in the market, sluggish transaction activity in Ahmedabad has resulted in stable rentals at main street locations like C.G. Road, Satellite Road, Law Garden and S.G Highway.

However, as compared to the first quarter of last calendar year 2012, mall vacancy fell by three per cent, down from 36 per cent for the said quarter last year.

According to the report, mall rentals were noticed to be steady across most cities except NCR, Mumbai and Bengaluru. Dearth of quality mall space availability coupled with high demand led to 10 per cent rise in mall rentals at Noida, (NCR) over the last quarter. Owing to lease expirations and consequent churn in malls of the South Delhi micro market, a quarterly upswing of two per cent in mall rentals was witnessed. Over the quarter, the mall rentals at Vashi and Ghatkopar appreciated by 6-7 per cent owing to the limited space availabilities in quality malls at these locations.