Knight Frank India’s latest report, Bharat Internationalised: The Structural Ascent of India’s Tier 2 Retail Cities — the 10th edition of its Think India Think Retail series — highlights Jaipur as one of India’s most promising retail destinations, driven by strong consumer spending and growing appeal among international brands. The report notes that brands from the United States currently dominate Jaipur’s international retail landscape, accounting for 41% of all international stores in the city’s shopping centres. Backed by a population of around 4 million and average monthly per capita spending of INR 6,640, Jaipur offers a compelling consumption market for global retailers seeking expansion beyond metropolitan centres. However, despite its strong consumer fundamentals and an overall retail vacancy rate of 18%, the city remains relatively underpenetrated by international brands due to a shortage of high-quality retail spaces that meet global standards.
A significant portion of the city’s existing retail inventory comprises ageing Grade B assets that fall short of the design, scale, infrastructure and tenant adjacency requirements typically sought by international brands. As a result, the available stock remains inadequate to support the expansion needs of premium and global retailers.
The report categorises Jaipur among the ‘Frontier Three’ retail markets, alongside Surat and Nagpur. Together, these cities represent a consumer base of approximately 16 million people with substantial spending power yet remain relatively underpenetrated by international retailers despite their strong market potential.
The current international retail presence in Jaipur is dominated by brands from the United States, which account for 41% of all international stores in the city’s shopping centres. Brands from the United Kingdom account for 15%, while retailers from the Middle East and East Asia (excluding Japan and South Korea) each contribute 13% of the international store mix. European brands (excluding the UK) account for 7% of the market, reflecting Jaipur’s growing attractiveness as a destination for global retail expansion.
Shishir Baijal, International Partner, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India, said, “Jaipur stands out as one of the most compelling retail growth stories in India’s Tier 2 landscape. The city combines a sizeable and increasingly aspirational consumer base with strong spending power, making it a highly attractive market for international brands. While global retailer presence today remains below potential, this is less a demand-side challenge and more a reflection of supply constraints in quality retail infrastructure. As premium retail ecosystems mature, Jaipur is well positioned to emerge as a key growth destination for international brands.”
As per the Knight Frank International Brand Penetration Ranking (KF-IBPR 2026) framework, Jaipur is the top frontier market with score of 30 a high growth potential for the market as a key destination for global brands. The Knight Frank International Brand Penetration Ranking (KF-IBPR 2026) frameworkis a composite weighted score on a 0–100 scale combining four pillars — Brand Breadth, Brand Intensity, Market Readiness and Consumption Power; each pillar is min-max normalised across the 24 cities. As per the study, Jaipur scored lower on parameters of brand breadth and brand intensity even while market readiness and consumption power were strong.