Mumbai malls open 24/7: Day 1 witnesses lukewarm response

The first day of introduction of the 'Mumbai 24 hours' initiative  was not euphoric.

Not all mall owners participated in the open initiative due to concerns over manpower, additional costs, and doubts about late-night footfalls.

Gaurav Narang, Founder of Coffee Culture, which is present in Phoenix Market City Kurla and Korum Mall Thane, said: "The concerns clearly are managing the staff, meeting their needs and also making sure they are enjoying the night duty."

On January 22, the Cabinet of Maharashtra approved a proposal to allow malls and eateries to remain open in Mumbai 24/7, from January 27.

Malls that remained open included Atria in Worli, High Street Phoenix in Lower Parel, Phoenix Market City in Kurla and Growel’s in Kandivali, remained open till 3AM for a trial run over the weekend on Jan 24th and 25th night said the response was not ‘overwhelming’ and so they may not continue to keep it open round the clock on weekdays.

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So far, mall owners have decided to keep the malls open until 3AM only on weekends and on national holidays.

"In the first phase, we would encourage F&B operators to keep the outlets open on weekends and National holidays till 3AM. Depending on the response, we will take this further to other retailers," said Mukesh Kumar, Chief Executive Office, Infiniti Mall located in Mumbai.

Infiniti Mall (Andheri) is spread across 310,000 square feet with 65 stores, a six-screen multiplex (PVR Icon), a food court, a family entertainment center and restaurants besides shopping.

Infiniti Mall (Malad) is one of the biggest malls in Mumbai and is spread across 1.20 million square feet with more than 180 shopping brands, a multiplex, 36 food outlets and a Family Entertainment Centres (FEC)  spread over 60,000 square feet.

Also, high cost of electric and temperature maintenance in food outlets was an immediate concern raised by mall owners if it was not matched with equal footfalls.

Global fast food chain McDonald's, which had also agreed to keep their seven outlets open until the wee hours through the week, could not do so as malls itself remained shut on the first day after the lukewarm response during the trial run on a weekend.

Most mall owners agreed that Mumbai being the financial capital of India, long-term success of 24/7 malls has its own potential. However, it is contingent also on 24/7 transport access and civil safety processes.

Mall owners also feel that the lifeline of Mumbai, its local train service, should have services past midnight and there should be sufficient police patrolling around 24/7 shopping areas.