UB-Prestige venture to set up luxury mall in Bangalore

Bangalore: UB City, a joint venture of UB Holding and the Prestige Group, is all set to house a luxury retail mall – UB City–The Collection.

The 1.25-lakh sq ft mall will sell a host of major international and Indian luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Fendi, Dunhill, Rolex, Omega and Kimaya, across categories such as apparel, jewellery, accessories, home and electronics. It will also house food and beverage outlets and the Kingfisher Sports Bar.

Mr Irfan Razack, CMD, Prestige Group, said: “India’s retail market is ready for UB City – The Collection and everything it brings along— fashion, lifestyle and entertainment.”

Luxury retailing in India is estimated to be worth Rs 1,500 crore, and is set to grow at 20 per cent for the next five years.

Apart from retail space, UB City, developed at over Rs 300 crore across 1.4 million sq feet, also offers office space, service apartments (managed by Oakwood Premium) and a 250-room luxury hotel from J.W. Marriot.

Early movers


Luxury brand Louis Vuitton is one of the brands that will set up shop in The Collection. Mr Tikka Shatrujit Singh, Advisor to the Chairman, Louis Vuitton, said: “This will be the brand’s first store in South India, in what promises to be the most luxurious destination of Bangalore. The 1,700-sq feet store is scheduled to open in the first quarter of 2008.”

The store will retail handbags, suitcases, accessories and leather goods.

Louis Vuitton already has two stores in the country – in Mumbai and Delhi. It hopes to open more stores in these cities. It is also evaluating cities like Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata.

Globally, Louis Vuitton has around 385 stores. China, India and Russia are the emerging markets, said Mr Singh.