Discussing the obstacles which have been facing by the shopping centre industry in India in getting innovative models for funding and investment during the current economic downturn, the panel comprising top real estate developers and consultants observed that the lenders lack optimism and they should get out of it.
Speaking on the session, Nandini Chopra, executive director, KPMG (Corporate Finance Division) said, “The deal flows were reasonably focused in the year 2007 unlike 2008 and from the banks side, the lenders have not been positive and this has been the major footfall.”
Sanjay Verma, executive MD, South Asia & Australia, Cushman & Wakefield summarized, “Construction of shopping centers cannot take place without foreign capital investments. It is also critical that developers and retailers have to take their relation to the next level and create transparency and discipline, directed towards the stakeholders.”
The discussion took into account the economic slowdown and observed that deployment of key components of CAM needs to be rationalized for enhancing the overall mall experience for the customer, thus maintaining profitable growth for the retailers and developers.
— IndiaRetailing Bureau
