Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand, is all set to witness the opening of its first mall. JD Histreet, the city’s much-awaited first mall, will open its door to customers in the second week of September. Developed by Jokhiram Durgadutt, the 1.1 lakh-sq.ft mall, situated on Main Road in Ranchi, promises to offer an international shopping experience to people of the city.
Uttara Sarawgi, brand strategist, Jokhiram Durgadutt, says, “It’s just a matter of a few days that people of the city will experience an international mall, right in the heart of the city. JD Histreet is going to be the city’s first and, so far, the only destination for shopping and entertainment activities.”
Inspired by the architectutal pattern of Greece, the mall design is an architectural marvel. Recreating the old world glamour and sophistication of Medieval Europe, the mall interior has been done with ‘Thassof’ stones imported from Europe. The facade of the mall has also been tastefully designed using with Brazilian wood. “The mall has been given a very classy, European look and the brand mix of the mall has also been created accordingly. The colour scheme used for the entire mall is white and brown. It is aimed at giving a modern yet posh shopping experience to customers,” adds Sarawgi.
The mall promises to offer the biggest congregation of national and international brands under one roof. The mall’s major anchor – Reliance Trendz – will soon open its 16,000-sq.ft big format store spread over the ground and first floors. On the second and third floors, the mall will house almost 16 international brand stores. It has already signed up brands such as Lee, Wrangler, Pepe and Fastrack, while talks are on with companies such as Indigo Nation, Scullers, Wills Lifestyle and others.
JD Histreet will also have a huge space dedicated to food and entertainment. The fourth floor houses an 8,000-sq.ft gaming zone operated by Bangalore-based Amoeba. It will have a three-lane bowling alley, scary house and video games for gaming enthusiasts. The fifth floor will house a spacious food court with eight counters offering eight different cuisines. The entire food court space will have massive seating arrangements as well.
The mall will also house Glitz – a three-screen multiplex owned by CNBC TV 18. Spread over the sixth, seventh and eighth floors of the mall, the multiplex will have 750 seats, alongwith a sprawling lobby area.
To offer convenient shopping, the mall features state-of-the-art facilities with 12 escalators, two elevators and the latest fire-fighting system.It also boasts of a huge carparking space with a capacity to accomodate 175 four-wheelers and 200 two-wheelers.
“We are trying to create a mall that would cater to niche audience. To ensure the best look, we have given immense emphasis on minute details, from the mall design to the brand mix, amentities and events,” adds Sarawgi.
With almost 80 per cent space already occupied, the mall will start operations within a fornight. While in the first phase, Glitz and Reliance Trendz will take off, the company says, the rest of the mall will be operational within a month. “We expect the mall to be fully operational by mid-October. We are yet to fix a particular date, but it will be within the next 10-12 days,” says Sarawgi.
The mall authorities expect to have at least 2,000 footfalls on weekdays. “We guess every person in Ranchi will come and visit the mall as soon as it opens. Not just Ranchi, the mall will attract people from adjacent areas such as Bokaro, Muri, Jamshedpur and Durgapur,” claims Sarawgi.
– Piasi Sinha
