Retail brands expand in India’s major pilgrim places: CBRE report

Retail brands including Manyavar, Reliance Trends, Raymonds, Pantaloons are opening their stores in spiritual cities like Ayodhya, Varanasi, Amritsar, Puri, Tirpupti and Ajmer.

As per a report by real estate consultant CBRE, fashion retail chains are capitalising on the surge in spiritual tourism across 14 cities in India.

Titled, 'Decoding Real Estate through the Spiritual Tourism Lens', the report identifies Amritsar, Ajmer, Varanasi, Katra, Somnath, Shirdi, Ayodhya, Puri, Tirupati, Mathura, Dwarka, Bodh Gaya, Guruvayur, and Madurai as key cities witnessing this retail boom.

Catering to the growing tourist population, many retail brands are setting up stores in both established mall clusters and high-street locations in these cities.
These include Manyavar, Reliance Trends, Raymonds, Market99 and Pantaloons who have opened their stores in Ayodhya while Varanasi is also witnessing the a number of new stores being set up by brands like Zudio, Reliance Trends, Manyavar, Pantaloons and Shoppers Stop.

According to Anshuman Magazine Chairman & CEO, India, South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa, CBRE, this expansion in store network is being boosted by the rapid development of spiritual tourism in India alongwith government initiatives to boost tourism and improve connection between pilgrimages.

The rise of online retail platforms offering easy access to faith-based products and services is also boosting this growth, adds Magazine.

Ram Chandnani, Managing Director, Advisory & Transaction Services, CBRE India, notes, guided by a commitment to cater to the unique needs of spiritual travellers, these initiatives aim to bolster infrastructure, safeguard heritage sites, and ultimately drive regional economic growth.