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Food Courts Re-Open With Social Distancing, SOPs
October brings some very good news for the Shopping Centre Industry with malls in Maharashtra finally getting clearance to open their food courts in the entire state. Aside from this, cinemas and other entertainment zones inside malls have been given the green signal to re-open with 50 percent occupancy. The industry – especially the F&B sector which had suffered losses worth crores – is hoping that the next few months will signal a recovery of sorts and with the festive season approaching, the news has been a relief for the industry.
Food courts and cinemas, which contribute about 22 percent to the total revenues, have borne the brunt of the impact on operations due to social distancing and are also expected to take the longest to recover. Aside from this, people are still scared and in two minds – should they eat outside of their homes, in a public place or not? This was obvious in the fact that food courts in shopping malls were deserted in the initial phase of the re-opening.
The October 2020 edition of Shopping Centre News brings its readers a look at food courts in India, and how they are innovating in a new normal and amidst strict Government SOPs.
The edition also brings its readers, an exclusive feature on how malls are gearing up for the festive season in the COVID era, what they are doing differently to engage with customers and bring them back to the mall.
October was also a productive month for the IMAGES Group which conducted a first of its kind Live on Your Screen digital event – ‘Phygital Retail Convention’. The 2-day event received an overwhelming response from both the Retail & Shopping Centre Industries. Readers can visit https://phygitalretailconvention.com/ and view sessions which will be live for one month.
As always, we hope you find the issue informative and useful. Log on to our website https://www.indiaretailing.com/category/ shoppingcentre/ for more features, analysis and expert opinions.
