A decade ago, Pune could not boast about a mall culture. Now, Punekars can choose to go to a  mall for a shopping and dining experience and even attend a concert on the weekend. Arun Arora, centre head, Phoenix MarketCity, Pune, says that shoppers not only flock to malls to buy stuff but also to have a unique experience. “If one goes to the mall, they will definitely buy something or the other. But now the focus is generally on converting malls into a destination, offering an experience in terms of hospitality that customers can enjoy while keeping the shopping factor intact,” he says. 

Also, nowadays there are various brands that cater to all segments of society. “There is a good combination of different brands, from local to international ones, that people from different sections of society can easily relate to. The decor, events, concerts, art and the lighting also add to the visual experience of consumers,” says Arora.

Rahil Ajani, centre head, The Pavillion, Pune, too believes that malls have become places where friends, families and colleagues can walk without a set agenda and yet find something that is relevant for them and this could be food, fashion or entertainment. “Malls have evolved from places which were very transactional, to now wanting to deliver a holistic experience where there is something on offer for everyone in the family. Relevance and experience in my opinion are two extremely critical factors that lead to repeat visits of patrons,” says Ajani.

But in this digital age online shopping is believed to have given a stiff competition to malls. Ajani, however, disagrees. He says, “Despite huge discounts and free deliveries in e-commerce sites, a large number of Indians still believe in touching and feeling the product before paying for it. Today’s buyer is intelligent and aware than those from a decade ago. With internet penetration at an all time high, people now know what is the right product for them and they are equally aware that they have a plethora of options to choose from. This has saved us time and energy of helping brands build relevance. A great example of how active people are on social platforms and the internet is ‘The Tree of Joy’ which we are hosting at The Pavillion as a part of our Christmas festivities. This 30 feet tall Christmas Tree has 32 LED TVs as a part of the tree and streams live feeds from the selfies that people click around it and also from their posts on social media. We have already clocked millions of digital impressions and over 100,000 people have clicked images around it over the past few weeks. Such has been the rush, that brands within our malls have come forward and asked us to advertise them on this tree.”