India’s food and beverage (F&B) industry has emerged as one of the strongest demand drivers for retail real estate, reshaping leasing patterns across major cities. The segment’s growing appetite for high streets and malls is pushing developers to allocate a larger share of upcoming projects to dining and entertainment spaces, underlining its role in the next phase of retail expansion.The segment has clocked 4 million sq. ft of leasing across the top seven cities, including Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Pune, over the past 10 quarters, showed data from JLL India. Food and beverage leasing has increased its share of overall retail activity in the top seven cities, to 22% in 2025 from 16% in 2023.This expansion comes at a time when India’s retail sector has seen 18.6 million sq ft of new shopping mall space added in the last five years, taking the total operational Grade A stock to 88.7 million sq ft.“India’s retail sector has demonstrated remarkable resilience, with over 22 million sq. ft. of leasing activity despite global headwinds. The growth story is truly a tale of multiple cities, each carving their unique niche…The diversified, regionally-balanced growth reinforces that India’s retail expansion isn’t just robust, it’s strategically distributed across our key metros,” said Rahul Arora, Head – Office Leasing & Retail Services, Senior MD (Karnataka, Kerala), India, JLL.Live EventsAmong key cities, Bengaluru leads with over one-third of F&B leasing, driven by hotspots like Indiranagar’s craft beverage hubs. Mumbai and Delhi-NCR together contribute nearly two-thirds, with Delhi NCR holding 26% share in drinking establishments and showing a stronger tilt toward malls over high streets.“The F&B sector is fundamentally reshaping India’s retail real estate landscape. We are witnessing a paradigm shift where developers are planning to dedicate up to 25% of space in upcoming destination malls to F&B, a clear response to the segment’s robust demand dynamics,” said Samantak Das, Chief Economist and Head of Research and REIS, India, JLL.By 2028, 6 million sq. ft of new F&B space is expected across the top seven cities, likely to be absorbed within three to five years as operators seek quality locations. With high streets driving over half of leasing in the last 30 months, the segment is cementing its influence on India’s retail real estate.The sector’s growth is led by domestic brands with 86% of leasing, while international players hold 14%. Since 2023, over 20 new global F&B brands led by US operators have entered India, with Delhi NCR and Mumbai as preferred entry points. More than 60 new global retailers, mainly from EMEA and America, opened their first Indian stores during this period, again led by Delhi-NCR and Mumbai.Overall retail absorption stood at 22 million sq. ft between 2023 and H1 2025, with malls contributing 52%. For F&B, high streets account for 54% of leasing, malls 38%, and multi-cuisine formats 41%, reflecting evolving dining preferences, the data showed.Supported by rising amenity retail in business parks and $2.5 billion institutional inflows across 22 deals since 2018, F&B is set to remain a cornerstone of India’s retail real estate in the coming decade.Add as a Reliable and Trusted News Source



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