Hyderabad: High street retail powers through, despite second wave

HYDERABAD: Popular as a high street retail destination, Hyderabad saw significant movement in this sector even this year – between February and April – despite a growing second Covid-19 wave. According to reports, the city witnessed close 60,000 square feet (sft) of leasing by standalone outlets during this period alone, with store sizes ranging from 400 sft to 15,000 sft.
Those picking up space in Hyderabad include prominent food and beverage brands, apparel chains, electronic stores, jewellers among others.And while some of it continues to be limited to the city’s western corridor, many are found opening their doors to customers in other areas as well – A S Rao Nagar, Dilsukhnagar, L B Nagar to name a few.
“Other prominent markets that are seeing increased demand include Kukatpally, Miyapur and Vanasthalipuram,” said Pankaj Renjhen, COO and joint managing director of Anarock Retail, adding, “While high street retail destinations like Banjara Hills and Jubilee hills have long been high on demand, they have limited supply.” According to him, while many top-end brands, with a presence is Hyderabad’s malls, are taking their expansion plans to the high streets, some are planning to make their debut in the city with a standalone retail outlet.
Sumanth Reddy, immediate past president of the National Association of Realtors attributes this trend to two reasons: lower rentals and fear of Covid-19 among consumers. “The city’s high street retail has done well in the last quarter as landlords have been flexible with the rentals. Also, the high risk of Covid-19 infection in crowded spaces, which has led to lower footfall in malls, has further contributed to creating this demand,” he said.
Reports suggest that Hyderabad is among the leaders in this segment along with cities such as Bengaluru, Pune, Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai and Gurgaon. “Prominent tier 2 and 3 cities like Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Patiala, and smaller towns in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh (Indore, Bhopal, Gwalior) too have witnessing expansion by leading brands,” reads a report by Anarock.