Lulu Group to expand malls alongside e-commerce, sees the two as complimentary

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Jun 22, 2022

As Lulu Group continues to expand its network of malls across India, the business is confident that malls will not only survive the rise of e-commerce, they can actually benefit from it. 

Numerous stores in Lulu Group malls have omni-channel features and these enable the stores to be more tapped into customer preferences and offer interactive features. “Several retailers have focused on omni-channel strategies by blending the physical and online channels seamlessly,” said Lulu Group’s business head Shibu Philips, ET Retail reported.  

The business aims to continue to open malls across India and is not discouraged by the booming e-commerce market. Lulu Group announced earlier this month that it will open two malls in Uttar Pradesh and, just a month prior, signed a memorandum of understanding with the Karnataka government to invest in malls and hypermarkets in the state. 

Believing that the Indian retail market is still unorganised, Philips opined in a Lulu Group press release that malls are contributing to the organisation of the industry. This will spell success for the sector, according to Philips. 

The increase in disposable income in smaller, non-metro cities coupled with increased internet access has led to an increasing demand for branded goods in these locations, especially in the fashion category. This, according to Philips, is a positive sign of increased revenue for retailers moving forward.