Now, a mall for interior design

Pune's booming retail sector will soon have another feather in its cap: A mega mall dedicated to design and interiors.

All design needs will be met under one giant roof -- the mall will provide services relating to building materials to furniture and accessories. It will also have a mock design room where one can see what a chosen design will translate into.

The 550,000 square feet speciality mall, with seven separate buildings devoted to different kinds of building materials and products, is the first of its kind in the country and is expected to be ready by mid 2006.

Inderjit Singh Narula, president and CEO of Ishanya Mall said: "With the kind of construction activities going on around western Maharashtra, we expect to cater to a raft of clients from Mumbai and Pune."

According to a study by the ICICI Bank, the current construction boom in the state will result in some 570 million square feet of real estate coming into existence by the middle of 2007 in the region between Mumbai and Pune.

Ishanya plans to cater to this boom by providing the complete range of products services to architects and designers.

"Our main client is not the homemaker. We are looking at providing a B-to-B solution for professionals in the construction and design businesses," said Narula.

Services at the mall will include an information desk to advice customers on the best products given the end use, how to use different products, a mock room where designers can create their concepts on a smaller scale to show to clients and an auditorium for functions and events. This will be in addition to a complete range of products both Indian and imported.

Ishanya has also tied up with Indian Institute of Interior Design and Indian Institute of Architects for the project. IIID is expected to man the information counter.

Said IIID president Srikant Nivsarkar: "Right now most of our designers go to Dubai to source their materials. By making it available right here we will also be able to attract a lot of customers from rural areas and expand the market further."

According to Narula, the potential for the design industry in the country is huge. "At Rs 500 per square feet, just 570 million square feet coming up between Mumbai-Thane and Pune will result in a market of Rs 28,500 crore (Rs 285 billion)," he said.