'Super Center' coming up

A Rs. 25 crore project is to change the way the residents of South Bangalore do their shopping, eat out and entertain their children.

A "super center", which is the Valdel Group's first retail initiative, is spread over an area of one lakh sq. ft. The project is fast coming up close to Kanakpura Road. Once of the attractions the centre offers is parking space for 350 cars.

M. J. Shantaraam, Managing Director, Valdel Retail, says: "This is not another shopping mall where the promoters lease out space and fade away into background. We will operate the entire centre."

There will be a department store and a supermarket, both larger than the existing ones in the city. The department store will be stocked with a wide range of brands and some of the company's own branded clothing and accessories. Items will also be imported from Malaysian associate.

A food-court with mouth-watering cuisine and an entertainment centre are the other attractions. To complete the picture, there will be ab ATM, a photo shop, a chemist, florist, beauty parlour, and a greeting cards. The super centre is close to the Bannerghatta Road belt, a fast-delevloping area, and a number of IT firms and other enterprises employ young professionals with deep pockets here. Add to that the middle and upper middle-income families of Jayanagar and J.P. Nagar, and there is a large number of shoppers with enough purchasing power.

Valdel is looking at parents between 25 and 40 years of age with young children. "While parents shop, the children play in the amusement section, watched safely. Mothers can even hand over the shopping list to husbands, and spend time in the beauty parlour. You can even pick up a film or get an exposed roll printed and buy your medicines," as Mr. Shantaram puts it. The ATM is, ofcourse, nearby.