Bengaluru to host BuildConstruct India from March 19

Bengaluru will host a three-day construction, interiors and property exhibition “BuildConstruct India” from March 19 at Manpho Convention Center, Hebbal.

The exclusive event will bring together all stakeholders and segments of the industry and will also be conducted in other major cities of Western and South India.

Hundreds of building material, construction equipment, interiors and related product suppliers and major vendors are expected to participate in the event. Over 15000 strong B2B audience comprising of builders, architects, engineers, consultants, designers, fabricators, HNI and NRI purchasers are expected to attend the event. The exhibition will be set in an environment conducive to business promotion and trade, for end users.

BuildConstruct India will also have concurrent shows like the Furniture & Interiors National Expo (FINE'15) and the Property & Realty Expo (PRE'15).

The exhibition will be an opportunity for all those related to the building and construction industry (from the conception to the finished product stage), to interact under one roof. The mega event is being organised with the support of relevant government authorities, professional associations and industry.

The displays and demos will focus on new launches, energy-efficient and cost-saving products, equipment and technologies.

BuildConstruct India is organised by Strategic Trinity Events, a Champions Group Company; an event planning and promotion service provider with years of experience in the field.

Ashiana Housing bags CNBC Awaaz award as most promising realty firm

New Delhi: Ashiana Housing, the leading developer known more for their middle income housing and senior housing in the country, has been awarded with “The most promising company of the next decade” by CNBC Awaaz during the recently held Act for Good Governance summit in New Delhi.

Vishal Gupta

Ashiana Housing managing director Vishal Gupta received the honour in the presence of top corporate and political leaders.

Commenting on the award, Vishal Gupta said, “Ashiana Housing might not have got selected for the return it has consistently provided to the investors over the years, but for the bigger reason is ‘we care’. We care for our customers, we care for employees and we care for our country.”

“At Ashiana, we follow a culture and now it is in our veins, to look after our customers and employees like our own family. Our entire efforts are tuned to provide utmost comfort to our customers and a sense of satisfaction to ourselves. This is what makes us different from rest of the world,” added Gupta

The Act for Good Governance Summit is an initiative to bring various stake holders from society on a common platform and bring good governance from government’s corridors to boardrooms.

Ashiana Housing is the only brand from reality sector which received the award for its commitment, deliverance and setting up a role model for reality sector, a release said.

In the past also Forbes' has rated Ashiana among Asia's 200 Best Under a Billion Dollar Companies twice in a row (2010 & 2011). Also, the company has been honoured with Zee Business RICS Award, CNBC Awaz Real Estate Award, CREDAI Real Estate Award, Rajasthan Govt’s Bhamashah Award and BMA Seigwerk award etc., the release added.

Is E-commerce Replacing Physical Retail In India?

India's retail market value was estimated at $520 billion in 2013, and is expected to grow to $950 billion by 2018. With a CAGR currently pegged at 13%, the Indian e-commerce market is expected to grow the fastest within the Asia-Pacific Region – with its market size doubling every 2-2.5 years. This certainly gives us reason for deep introspection. While the global growth rate of online shoppers is estimated at 8-10%, India currently has more than 10 million online shoppers.

Anuj Puri

Though 70% of India's e-commerce market is related to travel (flights, hotel bookings, etc.), electronics and apparels are by far the most important categories in terms of sales. The key driver Indian e-commerce is the rapid increase of broadband internet penetration, which is growing at a whopping 20% every year. The rising standards of the mushrooming middle-class with high disposable incomes, coupled with the urban influence on rural aspirations, have led to an exponential growth of the internet culture in India.

This is very pertinent to the Indian retail sector. The internet has given Indian consumers access to a wide spectrum of products and services, even in places where brick-and-mortar shopping complexes have not reached. Also, the availability of a much wider range of products when compared to physical retail stores, coupled with relatively lower prices, is driving demand for online retail. With the evolution of the online marketplace, sites like Flipkart, Snapdeal, OLX and Jabong are thriving and more and more Indians are buying goods online.

E-commerce in India took off with a deluge of portals, including many focused on travel, media and jobs. The governments’ drive to open the sector for FDI in B2B business via the automatic route and bring e-commerce to the centre stage has caused a number of major players to venture into India. Today, Ebay, Amazon, Expedia and some serious Indian players are giving these physical retailers a run for their money.

Flipkart and Snapdeal’s recent fund-raising exercise put paid to the argument that investors are moving away from Indian e-commerce. The change in government and the stride of positive sentiment across the nation has led to growing faith in India and Indian business models. The governments’ initiative to simplify regulations and make India a business-friendly nation is definitely benefiting e-commerce.

Today, manufacturers and retailers running brick-and-mortar stores are anxiously asking the government to intervene with the creation of a regulatory body to stop e-retailers from undercutting prices. Physical retailers are definitely feeling the heat by the marketing blitz of their online counterparts, and the question of whether e-commerce is pushing out brick-and-mortar retailers looms large.

Many big companies are rising to the challenge and adopting smarter strategies to guard their turf. The likes of Tata, Future Group and Reliance are expanding their reach by foraying into e-commerce via alliances with leading online players. Indian retailers have clearly read the writing on the wall. As the competition grows, an omni-channel approach to delivering a unified and consistent customer experience is the new watchword.

Improving the overall experience is the avenue to success. Regardless of whether we’re talking about e-retailing, traditional brick-and-mortar retailing or a combination of both, the winners in this new steeplechase will have to evolve their offering to meet the needs, wants and desires of consumers. Retailers will increasingly have to offer services through various mediums.

However, e-commerce is still unlikely to completely replace or even seriously dent physical retail in this country. For Indians, malls are more than just shopping destinations – they are getaways from the humdrum and constraints of their day-to-day life, and mall developers have been catering to this dynamic by creating shopping complexes that offer retail, entertainment and dine-out option under a single roof.  This is not a combination of offerings that even the slickest e-commerce operator can hope to compete with. 

‘Experiential Retail’ is the holy mantra of the Indian shopper, and in the years to come, every mall across the country will do everything it can to turn the whole shopping experience into an entertainment experience

Anuj Puri

The writer is the Chairman & Country Head, JLL India.

Real Estate 2015 to bring more good news to home buyers

The year 2014 has been quite fruitful for the real estate sector in India in terms of business sentiments. The real effect of many of the policies and amendments announced in 2014 will take effect in 2015, says Anuj Puri, Chairman and Country Head of Jones Lang Lasalle, India.

Starting from Union Budget FY2014-15, where affordable housing was considered on par with infrastructure, to relaxation of rigidity in the Land Acquisition and Real Estate Regulatory Bill, the Indian real estate sector is receiving consistent doses of energy, he says.

Also, REITs are to hit the market at last, and only a few details need to be sorted out before they get the funding wheels spinning. The winds of change are now blowing more perceptibly and 2015 will definitely be a good year for the real estate sector on three counts:

The threat of inflation has completely submerged, and borrowing rates are to go down. Property prices staying stable and good deals being offered by developers in order to clear their inventory, fence-sitting home buyers will be finally encouraged to press the ‘buy’ button.

Economic activity is gradually picking up, and the GDP growth is to reach 6.5% y/y in the next financial year - FY2015-16. As per few reports from recruitment agencies, corporate India will be hiring more of talent due to the rising business activity in 2015. Put together, this means a very favourable market for both residential and commercial real estate.

The developers are finally coming in with the kind of supply that is relevant to demand. They are now largely focusing on affordable homes. This will go a long way to bridge the existing wide gap between demand and supply of affordable homes, Puri concludes.

Selling non-performing assets to improve cash flows

As real estate scenario in many Indian cities continue to be grim, cash strapped developers have to fight hard to get adequate liquidity to launch new projects or complete the on-gong projects in time. 

Several developers with huge land holdings are unable to launch new projects with their own limited capital, and hence look for partnership with better-funded real estate developers or those eyeing for development opportunities in an asset-light project by offering them development rights.

In such a situation, incoming developer can build a smaller project while the main developer liquidity by allowing multiple partners in their large land parcel. This improves cash position by bringing them money as part of joint venture developments, or if the incoming partners buy smaller pieces of the big land parcel.

Also, developers are generally interested to sell off land parcels which they do not want to develop in the near future due to financial constraints, says, Kishor Pate, CMD - Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd..

Developers opt for partnership in the following ways:

1.     Through joint venture development: – The incoming partner develops and sells the project, while the main developer gives away development rights but retains the ownership of land.

2.     Selling partial land holdings for township developments:  Developers sell smaller pieces of land from the main land to many small developers to execute smaller projects to create a township project.

3.     Outright sale of land: - Developers sell lands which he is not intend to develop in the immediate future to big developers to get rid of his non-performing assets and solve their liquidity crisis.

Effect on Home Buyers

On the face of it, jointly developed project may not have any impact on buyers on monitory point of view. However, However, of the original developer of the township project gives developing rights to multiple developers, then, buyers should be more vigilant for quality variations. On the positive side for buyers, the main developer may offer discounts in buildings falling in his own share if his cash constrains were the reason for the partnership.

M3M pays Rs 300 crore advance to Sahara to seal land deal

M3M India, a leading ultra-luxury real estate developer, has paid a whopping Rs 300 crore in advance to Sahara Group to close the deal of Rs 1221 crore on a premium land parcel in Gurgaon. 

The unprecedented move shows the real estate giant’s earnest desire to develop the land into a Smart City within a short span of time. This demonstrates M3M’s confidence and desire to obtain and go-ahead with the development.

M3M India has made this investment following the land transaction worth Rs.1221 crore that it had sealed with Sahara Group for 185 acres of land in Delhi NCR region. The land will be utilized for the development of branded residencies, branded service apartments, multiplexes, hotels, offices, entertainment centers and other smart city features.

Pankaj Bansal, Director-M3M India said, “Every deal we enter into is a matter of great importance for us. We are eager to close the deal with Sahara Group so that we can kick start the developmental work of the Gurgaon land; hence we opted to make the advance payment. This is a testament to the fact that we are constantly endeavoring to make remarkable contributions to the real-estate industry and construct uber-smart cities for our patrons.”

Going by the deal, M3M India was supposed to pay only Rs 150 crore but ended up paying another tranche of Rs 300 crore to shorten the time to conclude the deal. Contrary to the lukewarm position of most real estate players in the market today, M3M India is launching into new deals and leaving no stone unturned to transform the fate of the property landscape of the country.

Luxury unlimited: Mumbai tower to have private pool on every balcony

Mumbai: Going a step further in offering luxury living in India, a developer in Mumbai has offered a private balcony pool to each home of a multi-story ultra-luxury residential apartment it is constructing in Bandra.

Bandra Ohm, a 30-story tower with 100 ultra-luxury residential units, will be made in such way that each crescent-shaped balcony of an apartment will have a pool made of acrylic (the material used in aquariums).

Being designed by Hong Kong-based firm James Law Cybertecture, the building with private swimming pools offers a new definition to the luxury living in high-rise buildings.

Though a lot questions come to the mind with regard to the sustainability, durability of buildings, replacement of water in swimming pools, etc, the new ‘balcony pool’ concept has indeed attracted the attention of property enthusiasts and high-end property buyers in Mumbai.

A Wall Street Journal report quoting James Law Cybertecture having said that, "The design concept of the tower is inspired by the ripple effect generated by water droplets, which is also known as the capillary wave."

The ripple creates an empty space at the center of the building, where the builders have built a specially designed clubhouse.

But this is not the first of its kind development that will have a private swimming pool in each balcony. A 35-story residential complex in Kuala Lumpur has 94 Apartments and 95 Swimming Pools. In Bahamas too, there is a 34-unit Honeycomb building under construction which will have a private pool in every home, the report said.

But many doubt whether the buildings with private balcony pools are worth a buy. Since they are usually quite small and have a high possibility of spilling over. Also, there is always a possibility of potential disaster due to leak.

On builders’ point of view, the complexity in making swimming pool at the balcony will increase the construction cost significantly. Obviously, this extra cost will be passed on to the customers. For example, the Honeycomb's condos that are 5,800 square feet are priced at $15 million.

"The definition of luxury has been changing constantly in India. It is good that developers are trying new things to attract potential customers. They should make sure that such construction should have longevity and strong enough to provide protection to the residents concerned,” says Mukesh Gowariker, a Mumbai-based property consultant.