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Photo: K.R. Deepak

Shopping The impact of the entry of the mall culture in Vizag on the retail front has been electric

They are the signs of changing times. Huge shopping malls dabbed with plush interiors, plazas, mega complexes and lifestyle stores – all that announce that a city has arrived as a thriving commercial hub. Every major street is dotted with the sheen of plate glass and the slither of bubble lifts of new lifestyle stores and Vizag wears them like glittering jewellery. The new band of lifestyle stores lure their clients with the promise of an afternoon of shopping that will lift their spirits and lighten their wallets.

The impact of the entry of the mall culture in Vizag on the retail front has been electric. There are the big old names like CMR shopping mall and Kalaniketan dazzling with their brilliant presence on the streets. In the last two years, almost every silent corner of the city is grabbed by one of these mega malls, transforming the places into a busy hub of activity. Big brands like Spencer’s hypermarket and Big Bazaar offer brand outlets, designer studios, swanky restaurants, family entertainment zones and cultural activities – all under one roof. You just have to graze at leisure at the mammoth shopping segments. Like Alice in Wonderland, the floors in malls have been programmed to make sure that you look, stop, touch and buy! There are floor-wise counters and categorised sections in most of these malls for the convenience of the shoppers.

One of the brand new entrants to join in this bandwagon of shopping extravaganza is V Square, the joint venture of Vaibhav Jewellers and Kankatala. The showroom, with its massive one lakh square feet area and constructed at a cost of Rs.25 crores with ground plus four upper floors has two blocks - one for gold, silver, diamond and ruby jewelleries and another for sarees, dress materials and kid’s and men’s wear section.

However, when it comes to parking vehicles it demands great deal of careful planning to zoom into the parking spaces and to move out of the jammed places. To counter this problem V Square has two sub-cellars of parking area that can comfortably accommodate 120 cars.

The flamboyant mall has the grand jewellery segment of Vaibhav Jewellers on the left and at the right side is the colourful clothing showroom of Kankatala. The USP of this mall is its wide range of jewellery (don’t miss the antique jewellery section) and garment collection that invariably scores a point over the rest.

The ground floor of Vaibhav Jewellers’ block is packed with glittering collections of gold right from the latest designs of bangles to an impressive range of gold sets. As you proceed ahead, you are drawn into the depths of the mall like a bumblebee ramming into a wild flower for nectar. An array of finger rings, earrings, chains and bracelets adorn the second floor of the block. The second floor is furnished with a grand collection of silver filigree. “We have the largest collection of 92.5 sterling silver jewellery and articles and the only showroom to also give a guarantee card on silver purchases,” says CMD of Vaibhav Jewellers Manoj Grandhi. Right from mirror stands, payals, kumkum boxes and ‘kuber’ deepams to a range of artefacts and exclusive sofa sets that are worth Rs.10 lakhs are available here. The third floor is the dream world of every woman with its luminous range of IGI certified diamond jewellery. Step into the fourth floor and you are sure to be floored by the amazing range of antique jewellery that has a feel of an eternal charm.

Kankatala’s garment block has a mind-boggling range of sarees, dress materials, designer wear, kids and men’s section. The ground floor has a colourful collection of silks like kanjeevaram, arani, patola and coimbatore silks and designer sarees in crepes and georgettes. In the designer saree section, collections of ‘Fair Lady’ designer who won awards at the recently held international fashion show in Delhi are also showcased. Here, the other collection worth mentioning is the ‘paper mache’ work from Kashmir. “And we are the only showroom showcasing such wide range of designer sarees. Tremendous hardwork goes into the making of these sarees. It takes more than eight to nine months for eight women to weave one ‘paper mache’ saree,” says Kankatala CMD Kankatala Mallik. The second floor has a good variety of dress material in party and daily wear collection and a range of kid’s wear. Men’s wear section with an impressive range of formal collection is on the third floor of the block.

The mega shopping experience doesn’t end here. It is also packaged with a host of surprises for the customers. Lucky draws and free gifts form an exciting part of the mall culture. At V Square, lucky draws are held every day while a special draw is held on Sundays. But the big prize waiting for its esteemed winners is the bumper draw with its string of mega prizes that will be held shortly. “There are more than one crore worth prizes to be won through these draws,” says marketing manager J.Raghunath.

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