Mumbai prime retail leasing surges 82%

Thanks to strong demand from international retailers.

Mumbai’s prime retail market recorded a banner year in 2025, with leasing activity surging approximately 82% year-on-year, according to JLL. While leasing activity declined 24% quarter-on-quarter in Q4, the full-year numbers reflect robust demand across malls and high streets, particularly from international retailers in the luxury, fashion, and beauty segments.

Net absorption for the year reached 0.9 million sq ft, driven primarily by new mall completions earlier in the year. During Q4, the suburbs dominated leasing activity, highlighted by prominent store openings including Game Palacio, Louis Phillipe, and Jus Jumpin across key malls. Despite this strong demand, no additional mall completions were recorded in the final quarter, leaving total mall stock unchanged at 15.5 million sq ft as of Q4 2025.

The healthy leasing momentum across premium, operational malls helped push vacancy down by approximately 30 basis points quarter-on-quarter and 230 basis points year-on-year, indicating a tightening market. Rents grew moderately by 1.6% quarter-on-quarter, culminating in an 11% year-on-year increase in 2025, reflecting consistent growth throughout the year. The Prime North submarket led rental growth, while investor appetite for high-quality retail assets remained strong, contributing to a 20 basis point year-on-year compression in yields.

Looking ahead, JLL expects retail demand in Mumbai to remain robust, supported by a combination of domestic purchasing power and international retailer expansion. The positive market sentiment, coupled with quality supply in the Prime and Suburbs submarkets, is anticipated to encourage further store openings and expansions across key retail clusters, reinforcing Mumbai’s position as a leading destination for both local and global retail investment.