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India's mall industry is in the midst of a quiet but significant shift, evolving from conventional retail spaces into full-fledged lifestyle destinations that bring together shopping, dining, entertainment and social experiences under one roof. Leading this transformation is Nexus Select Malls, which has anchored its growth strategy around a diverse retail mix, technology-led consumer engagement and immersive, experience-driven offerings.
In this exclusive interview, Nishank Joshi, Chief Marketing Officer, Nexus Select Malls, shares his thoughts on the brand's growth journey, the vision that has shaped its approach, evolving consumer behaviour, emerging retail trends, the role of technology and data, and his outlook on the future of malls in India.
Share with us Nexus Select Malls' origin, founding vision and the inspiration behind its retail approach.
Nexus Select Trust, India’s only listed retail REIT, has marked a decade since its inception, evolving from two acquired malls in Ahmedabad and Amritsar in 2016 into a 19-asset platform spanning 17 cities. Over the years, Nexus has positioned itself not merely as a real estate business, but as a key participant in India’s evolving consumption story.
This philosophy has guided its approach to asset selection, tenant mix and category expansion, reflecting the changing preferences of Indian consumers as they increasingly trade up. The portfolio has evolved from a hypermarket-led model to one centred around fashion, jewellery, beauty, food and entertainment, categories that increasingly define urban consumption.
Following its listing on Indian stock exchanges in 2023, Nexus has continued to deliver strong operational and financial performance. In the latest quarter, tenant sales grew 19% year-on-year, while retail net operating income increased 11%.
The company’s strategy has consistently been built around the philosophy of “buy, fix and premiumise”—acquiring assets with growth potential, enhancing their operational performance and tenant mix, and ultimately premiumising them into future-ready destinations. At the heart of this approach is the belief that malls must go beyond being transactional shopping spaces and evolve into vibrant destinations where consumers can shop, dine, experience entertainment, socialise and engage with their communities.
How has Nexus Select Malls' growth evolved, and what milestones shaped its retail position?
Since its inception, Nexus Select Malls has been a story of scale, transformation, and greater integration into the organised consumption scene of India. Since its early acquisitions in 2016, the company has gone on to acquire Elante Mall of Chandigarh in 2017 and eight Prestige Group malls in 2021.
A defining moment came in 2023, when we listed India's first retail REIT- a moment that gave retail investors direct access to India's consumption growth story for the first time.
Since then, we have scaled from our original base to 19 Grade-A malls across 15 cities. We've also begun moving beyond acquiring only completed malls into under-construction development partnerships, signalling a more diversified growth strategy. In addition to physical expansion, we have made substantial investments in upgrading the tenant mix, consumer experience improvement, and the introduction of new consumption-driven formats.
Operationally, momentum has been strong. We reported an 11% YoY growth in net operating income (NOI) to ₹510 crore for the first quarter of FY27, driven by growth in consumption and leasing.
Initiatives like NexusONE have also played a key role in deepening our understanding of consumer behaviour and building stronger, more meaningful connections with our shoppers. As we look ahead, our focus is twofold - continuing to expand our portfolio while premiumising our existing assets to elevate the overall experience we offer.
In essence, our growth mirrors India's own consumption story. From a handful of malls in 2016 to a listed, diversified platform today, with a clear path ahead to lead the next chapter of India's organised retail journey.
As shoppers seek combined retail, dining, entertainment and social experiences, how is Nexus responding to these evolving expectations?
The consumer’s expectation of today has undergone a tectonic shift. Consumers no longer look at malls as places to simply shop. They come to spend time, discover brands, dine with family and friends, and enjoy entertainment as part of the same visit, and everything we're building is designed around that shift.
Portfolio consumption surged 17% year-on-year to ₹3,850 crore, with trading density up 16% YoY to ₹1,931 per square foot per month and footfall growing 5% YoY to nearly 36 million visitors. Notably, ticketed attractions saw a significant boost, which tells us shoppers are increasingly coming in for experiences, not just transactions. This translated into an 11% year-on-year rise in net operating income to ₹510 crore for the quarter, even as management pointed to strong consumption and leasing momentum despite heightened global uncertainties.
Events such as our Denim & Sneaker Fest, beauty masterclasses, coffee experiences, and AR/VR experiences are some examples of the initiatives we're driving to make sure consumers spend more time at our malls. What began with the Sneaker Fest as a retail promotion has grown into a large-scale experiential property, turning malls into interactive culture zones with customisation studios, creator-led content, and immersive installations.
Technology is another vital enabler in this regard. Installations such as AAYAM at Nexus Seawoods let us convert our malls into exciting media and storytelling environments. Initiatives such as our partnership with District by Zomato, which we've expanded beyond retail to include dining and movies, help us create seamless experiences of shopping, dining, and entertainment for the consumer, all within a single visit.
How important are tech-enabled partnerships like District by Zomato in creating connected mall experiences?
Technology-enabled partnerships are central to how we think about the mall experience today. Our collaboration with District by Zomato is a good example of how consumers no longer look at malls as places to simply shop; they come to spend time, discover brands, dine with family and friends, and enjoy entertainment as part of the same visit. By extending the proposition beyond shopping to include dining and movies, we're able to create a more connected experience that adds value at every stage of that journey with exclusive rewards through the District app tying it all together.
Platforms like District can facilitate the bringing of various aspects of the journey together and enable consumers to discover offers, make plans for outings, book entertainment and experience dining and retail offers.
For us, the bigger opportunity lies in building an ecosystem. When retail, dining, and entertainment come together, customers get more value from every visit, and our malls become woven into their everyday lives rather than just being a destination for occasional shopping. Digital platforms also give us something equally valuable, that is insight. By understanding what consumers respond to, we can shape sharper offers and more meaningful rewards for them over time.
At the end of the day, technology is an enabler, not a replacement. It facilitates the experience - it doesn't define it.
How is technology changing brand discovery, mall engagement and purchase decisions, and Nexus's data strategy?
Technology has evolved the process of consumer journeys from being linear in nature to being much more interconnected. Consumers are now discovering brands via social media or digital platforms before making a move towards visiting physical stores whereas physical destinations have evolved into experience and discovery destinations for consumers.
The use of technology at Nexus Select Malls is pervasive and exists across multiple touchpoints. Digital installations such as PRISMOX at Hyderabad, CURV at Chennai and AAYAM at Navi Mumbai allow brands to connect through high impact communication. NexusONE app on the other hand helps us in offering features such as navigation, parking assistance, offers and loyalty driven engagement.
Insights related to footfall, engagement, billing and consumer behavior help us in understanding our audiences better and taking informed decisions on tenant mix, campaigns and consumer engagement.
It is however important to note that the purpose of collecting data is to drive better experiences and insights. As consumers continue to become more discerning, the capability to respond to their preferences becomes critical to success.
How has malls' shift to experiential spaces shaped Nexus's tenant mix, events and offerings?
The shift from transacting retail to experiential retail has redefined our properties’ business philosophy. No longer do we measure ourselves solely in terms of sales per square foot but by relevance, engagement, dwell and giving our consumer a reason to come back.
Thus, the tenant mix that we will have is increasingly diverse, focusing on F&B, fashion, beauty, active leisure, entertainment and emerging direct-to-consumer brands. We are also providing platforms for new and distinctive brands through our “First at Nexus” program.
Our events program is evolving in tandem. Rather than rely solely on traditional mall activations, we are building experiences related to fashion, culture, music, sports and pop culture. IP events like the Denim & Sneaker Fest, Gloss Box, and other experiential programming provide the means of building a community around common passions.
Technology helps to enhance the experience as well. Immersive digital installations turn the property’s common areas into the platform for telling stories, while digital loyalty programs and partnerships facilitate the link between physical and digital experiences.
The overall goal is to ensure that each visit is meaningful, distinct and repeatable.
What does an ideal retail mix look like, balancing fashion, F&B, entertainment and emerging categories for engagement and dwell time?
The perfect mall is not about a specific percentage split of categories. The perfect mall is the ability to integrate these categories to form a complete consumption ecosystem.
F&B, entertainment, leisure and other emerging categories must supplement the traditional categories of fashion and lifestyle. The perfect mix will have many reasons for customers to come to malls and spend more time there.
When developing the tenant mix at Nexus, we take into account the specifics of each market. Local preferences, cultural specifics, financial flows and competitive landscape affect our approach to curating the tenant mix. We use both popular brands and rising and direct-to-consumer companies to make the experience familiar and exciting at the same time.
We use events, pop-ups and our IP brands to create additional reasons for visitors. The digital loyalty program helps us increase the frequency of visits.
In general, the perfect mix is when shopping is only one of the components of the experience. When fashion, food, entertainment and leisure work in tandem, a simple mall turns into a destination point.
What trends are you seeing in footfall, dwell time, spending patterns across Nexus Select Malls?
Encouragingly, we have also seen resilience in physical retail, with a definite trend towards a more considered and purpose-driven visit. In Q1 FY27, consumption within the Nexus Select Trust portfolio increased 17% year-on-year to ~₹3,850 crore, while footfalls increased 5% to ~36 million footfalls. Trading density has increased by 16% for the quarter.
A key trend here is that consumers are not merely visiting malls to do their shopping. The presence of dining, entertainment, family offering and community-based events are driving visit frequency and dwell time.
We have also been able to see good participation by repeat customers. A sizable percentage of transactions that we have uploaded into our digital ecosystem belong to repeat customers.
From a category perspective, fashion, F&B, jewellery and family entertainment are key consumption categories. However, it is also true that experiences and new formats have been creating incremental reasons for the consumer to visit.
In conclusion, it is clear that although consumers may be choosy about how they want to use their time, they are still willing to spend where there is convenience, discovery and an experience that is impossible to replicate online.
What's the next phase of growth for India's mall industry, and where are the opportunities?
The next stage of the expansion of malls in India would be led by rising disposable incomes, growing brand awareness, and formalisation of consumption beyond the largest metros. There is great scope for state capitals, emerging cities, and under-penetrated consumption markets where consumers increasingly crave for good retail, dining, and entertainment offerings.
Our strategy for Nexus would remain focused on the “buy, fix and premiumise” approach. Rather than sticking strictly to greenfield developments over long cycles, we believe that there is great scope in buying properties with good catchment and re-developing them through better tenant mixes, better infrastructure, better operations, and better consumer experiences.
Premiumisation would be yet another growth driver for us. The rising aspirations of consumers across India create scope for premiumisation across fashion, beauty, jewellery, F&B, entertainment, and lifestyle segments.
Our goal in the medium term is to grow our portfolio to about 20 million sq. ft. and 30-35 consumption centers.
How do you envision Nexus Select Malls' future over the next three to five years?
Over the next three to five years, the Nexus Select Malls will evolve further from being a network of malls into an ecosystem of consumption and communities destinations.
In terms of expansion, our vision is to reach 30-35 consumption centres and about 20 million sq. ft. by 2030, through acquisitions, premiumisation, and expansion into consumption market segments.
Experiential retail will continue to remain our focal point of investment. This will be done through investments in entertainment, F&B, culture programming, pop-culture led experiential offerings and new-age retail formats which will provide consumers a reason to visit and revisit.
The role of technology will increase in our ecosystem from immersive digital media to smart infrastructure and loyalty platforms, and personal engagement.
Most importantly, we see that the malls in India are evolving into places beyond the act of consumption into community spaces. The malls in future will be seen as communities led, experience driven destinations and retail will be the heart of the lifestyle ecosystem.
