KOCHI: Metro stations will soon be more lively places with auction of kiosk spaces in Metro stations conducted in the past few days getting good response from the business fraternity. Of the 311 kiosk spaces, more than 200 have been rented out, officials with Kochi Metro Rail Ltd (KMRL) said.
The response received from the business community of the state, especially from Kochi, for the auction is quite encouraging, the officials said. Around 600 entrepreneurs, both women and men, participated in the auction.
“The fact that about 200 of the 311 kiosk spaces have been rented out is an indication of the resounding response to an aggressive marketing drive by KMRL to auction the commercial spaces to mobilize non-ticketing revenue. Small and medium traders also benefitted from the auction,” said a KMRL official.
As a prelude to the auction, a non-conventional method was adopted for marketing commercial spaces. The KMRL marketing teams had made field visits, distributed notices, visited shops and explained to traders the simple steps that would enable them to take space at Metro stations.
The marketing campaign for the kiosk spaces were conducted in association with a private college in Kochi. “The response has exceeded our expectations, with people coming in from distant places like Chennai, Kasaragod, Malappuram and Thiruvananthapuram. Many of them were Gulf returnees, who wanted to set up their small business in Kochi.
The process of allotment was so simple that all they needed to bring was a government ID card and registration fee. Once the auction was over, all approvals were readied in less than 30 minutes and the winners received the provisional allotment letter on the spot,” said the official. They were given three days’ time to submit the security deposit and another 30 days to open their kiosk. Aimed at making optimal space utility and uniformity in the aesthetics, a standardized design has been adopted for the kiosks to be set up by the winners.
The participants were from various sectors like local food chain brands, beauty and hygienic products, online services, tea and juice shops. There were homemakers who came with their maiden ventures as well. KMRL had arranged a reauction on November 6 afternoon for renting out the spaces which were not auctioned in the first round of auction.
Encouraging results of the auction raked in over 10 times the base price at many prime Metro stations. The auction will boost the nonfare box revenue of Kochi Metro and strengthen the patronization of Metro system, KMRL officials said. At a time when KMRL is recovering from the effects of Covid-19 pandemic, the space auction has come as a morale booster. KMRL managing director Loknath Behera has thanked all participants and auction winners for being part of the four-day auction process.
