The development of unorganized retailing into an organized one in the form of shopping malls was a new concept for India until recent years. With the changing shopping needs and aspirations, consumers are finding it easier to shop at malls where a wide choice of merchandise is available under one roof which comprises the reasons for the growth of shopping malls in India. Thus bringing hundreds of bulk buyers under one roof is fast emerging as a new concept in the country. It gives a far better ambience removing the hustle and bustle of the narrow lanes of market.
Malls have changed the way people used to shop but its time when malls too are changing. The emerging concept of themed based malls also called as specialty malls has changed the traditional outlook of the regular ones. They provide better shopping experience to their customers. The themed based mall caters specific need of the people and have specific target market segment. The success of these malls is entirely dependent upon the catchment areas, diversity with the product category and brands, the demand of the product/brands in the city and overall experience in the mall by the niche segment of customers. In such kind of malls, the range of goods plays a critical role in attracting customers.
India is still a nascent market for this kind of malls. These malls are now operating in many cities in India including tier 2 and 3. Prosperous northern cities like Jalandhar, Ludhiana, and Patiala are gaining importance among retailers for theme based malls catering to niche customers for automobiles and jewellery. Some of the theme based malls existing in India are- Gold Souk (jewellery malls), Wedding Mall, Electronic Mall, Auto Mall, etc.
With a rapidly expanding population of high net worth individuals, India has become one of the world's five largest markets for luxury products and this sector is expected to grow at a rate of 15-20 percent per annum over the next five years.