Noida Expressway India Expo Mart gears up for phase II, III
INDIAN EXPRESS
NEW DELHI:13 October '06
In its grandeur, the India Expo Mart (IEM) located along the NOida- Greater Noida Expressway rivals the best in the world even beating Delhi's Pragati Maidan when it comes to infrastructural amenities.
The mart caters exclusively to the cottage industry in India and showcases country's best handicraft products to exporters under one roof.
Besides boasting of an impressive 900 permanent showrooms, the mart also has eight huge inter-connected exhibition halls and a number of conference halls, banquet halls, restaurants etc. It is essentially a B2B (business to business) venture meant for promotion of Indian Handicrafts Industry.
The mart aims to emerge as the largest marketing platform for manufacturers of Indian handicrafts and overseas buyers to source their requirement of handicrafts at one place all through the year.
The mart is now gearing up to hold the largest Indian Handicraft and gift fair in Asia scheduled to open from October 13
Inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh this January (well before its deadline like the DMRC), the mart, is now gearing up for phase II and III, said Rakesh Kumar MD IEML, in an exclusive to Newsline.
While phase II would see a 400-room apartment complex coming up on the campus, phase III would see even more showrooms and exhibition halls being added to the existing infrastructure.
The apartment complex is meant for foreign buyers who have to stay put in the hotels for want of a residential complex in the mart itself.
Kumar says that this would not only reduce the hassels faced by prospective buyers but also increase the business opportunities as the mart functions round the clock.
Kumar said the IEML (jointly funded by Export Promotion Council of Handicrafts, Development Commissioner (handicrafts), Greater Noida Development Authority and exporters of handicrafts) is already giving a tough time to Pragati Maidan.
This year, the mart has hosted seven exhibitions and it expects to break even within the next five years. Besides, all the 900 showrooms are already booked. This has led the management to plan a third phase for the mart.
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