* India is getting wealthier, but high-end retail space

is scarce

* Luxury brands have a tiny presence in India compared to

China

* New mall projects are coming, but relief is still years

away

* Franchises with local retailers provide faster access

By Dhwani Pandya and Helen Reid

MUMBAI/PARIS, March 27 (Reuters) - In India's rapidly

growing economy, millions of newly affluent consumers are

fuelling demand for bags and accessories from the likes of Louis

Vuitton, Chanel and Dior. But getting to a store can be a

problem - there aren't that many of them.

With nearly 1.5 billion people and an economy growing more

than 6%, India is expanding faster than China, the luxury

industry's growth engine for over a decade.

That said, top brands are struggling to expand amid a severe

shortage of high-quality retail space. India only has three true

luxury malls: two in New Delhi - the Emporio and the Chanakya,

owned by real estate developer DLF, and the Jio World Plaza in

Mumbai, owned by the Reliance conglomerate.

"We have regular requests from the parent companies - from

LVMH Group, from Kering, from Richemont - to give them more

space for the brands they want to get into India," said Saurabh

Bharara, head of luxury malls at DLF.

"We have top 15 brands that are ready to enter India, if we

give them space tomorrow," he said, but added there was "zero

availability" right now.

DLF is planning an expansion of the Emporio, which will

double its leasable space of 160,000 square feet but will likely

only be operational by the end of 2028.

LVMH, Kering and Richemont

declined to comment.

ECONOMIC MOMENTUM, MORE WEALTHY PEOPLE

India now ranks fourth globally in the number of individuals

with wealth above $100 million, behind the U.S., China and

Japan, according to Knight Frank's Wealth Report 2025.

It also has a rapidly growing middle class. Yet, India's

luxury goods market was estimated at just $12.1 billion last

year, less than 3% of China's, according to Euromonitor data

reviewed by Reuters.

So while India holds the potential for greater luxury

sales that could offset slowing momentum in other key regions,

that promise may go unrealised until more malls are built.

"Quality real estate is the single largest stumbling block,"

said R. Satyajit, CEO of international brands at Aditya Birla

Fashion and Retail. The firm opened a franchise of France's

famed department store Galeries Lafayette in Mumbai in November,

affording some 200 foreign brands an entry into India.

Four luxury-focused malls, including the expansion of the

Emporio, are being planned, although all are expected to take

some years before opening. Of the other three, one will be in

Mumbai, another in Hyderabad, and one in Gurgaon, part of the

National Capital Region near New Delhi.

That's given hope to the likes of Chanel's managing

director, Amit Goyal, who said although "there are currently

only a few luxury malls in the country, several promising

projects are in development," adding that a store in Mumbai is a

near-term priority for the brand.

Some high-end labels have set up shop in less exclusive but

still premium malls. Encouraged by what it calls a young

confident Indian Gen-Z population, luxury sneaker brand Golden

Goose has opened three stores in two years - in New Delhi,

Bangalore and Mumbai.

SOME BRANDS HAVE NO STORES IN INDIA

The shortage of high-end mall space has resulted in some

notable gaps in India's luxury market. Several leading brands

like Patek Philippe and Loro Piana, for example, have no

physical stores in India.

Prada has no fashion stores and only one beauty

store, while Chanel has just one fashion store and seven

fragrance and beauty boutiques.

In China, by contrast, Prada has 14 fashion stores while

Chanel has 18. It's not uncommon for some brands to have 40-50

stores in China, Louis Vuitton and Gucci among them.

Even if a label is willing to forgo ultra-high-end spaces

characterised by large column-free stores, high ceilings and

ample parking, options remain limited.

India has only about 110 million square feet of grade-A mall

stock, compared with over 400 million in China and around 700

million in the United States, said property consultancy Anarock.

Opening branded stores on high streets is not seen as an

attractive business proposition, given Indian cities' problems

with cleanliness and pollution.

Given the hurdles, some brands prefer to enter India through

franchise agreements with the retail arms of conglomerates

Reliance, Aditya Birla Group and Tata Group, which act as

gateways to the market, providing store networks and capital.

Balenciaga, Tod's and Stella McCartney entered through

Reliance Brands, while Jio World Plaza gave Louis Vuitton a

Mumbai presence beyond hotels for the first time.

THE OTHER HURDLES

Meanwhile, developers face a chicken-and-egg problem.

Securing funding can be a struggle without firm commitments

from brands. But these "do not flow in until such a time as the

project is near completion," notes Rajneesh Mahajan, CEO of

Inorbit Malls, part of property firm K. Raheja Corp, which is

developing a luxury mall in Hyderabad.

Luxury players must also grapple with import duties of

35-40% that have traditionally pushed wealthy Indian shoppers

towards Paris, Dubai and Singapore.

Some brands are content to take their time.

Prada family scion Lorenzo Bertelli, for example, told

Reuters in December that India is the only real potential new

market the group is currently analysing, but a decision on when

and where to enter, which would also involve offices for

corporate operations, could take three to five years.

"So when you want to open one store, you also have a plan,

not just for one store, but for more than one store because you

have a lot of other cost attached to it," he said.