What’s put Ashram Road out of business?
Once known as Ahmedabad’s commercial hub, it’s no longer business as usual at Ashram Road. In the last two years, no new business establishment or showroom has come up on the road — the exception is City Gold multiplex.

Businessmen and showroom owners here are already feeling the pinch because ‘‘entries’’ — potential customers coming into a shop — have gone down drastically. Profits are going the same way. No wonder then that many showrooms are going in for renovations to jazz up their business and compete with similar shops on C G Road, 132-Feet Ring Road or in Vastrapur. Others are simply shifting shop.

While real estate agents feel the 5-km stretch reached saturation point long ago, land developers feel that Memnagar, Vastrapur and some stretches on the 132-Feet Ring Road are the latest hot spots for commercial development. That, they say, is why Ashram Road has been left far behind.

Purshottam Goyal, a prominent land developer who has been associated with Ashram Road for long, says: ‘‘Ashram Road is not considered a commercial hub anymore. It is the road everyone likes to avoid these days because of the number of traffic signals, parking problems and dull, non-business look. It’s a dead place now. People want better-looking and spacious offices, better approaches to their business establishments and finally, a posh address.’’

One of the shops associated with Ashram Road since long — the Raymonds retail outlet in Sharad Complex — is going in for a complete renovation to attract customers. ‘‘Very few come in these days although old regulars are still loyal. I think they all prefer jazzy shops that have started coming up elsewhere. We are going in complete renovation to make the shop more attractive. Business has taken a beating in the last few years and Ashram Road is definitely not what it used to be,’’ says owner and manager Kaushik Shah.

Arkant Jha, owner of Fair Price Cloth Store (Mafatlal Suitings) blames it on parking problems and the lacklustre look that the road has gained over the last few years. ‘‘Ashram Road has old buildings. There are no attractive shopping complexes with glass walls or novel designs. There is so little space for parking that after owners have parked, there is none left for customers. Who will take the trouble of parking elsewhere and walk to my shop? We are here since 52 years and business is really going down. Ashram Road was known for garments and cloth stores — now Gurukul Road is equally developed on these lines, so we’re losing cutomers,’’ Jha says.

Some like Kajal Boutique in Chinubhai Towers have winded up and moved elsewhere. The Arvind Group has closed down its old showroom in Sharad Complex and opened a new outlet. A famous jewellery store has also moved to Navrangpura.

According to several shop owners, Ashram Road is no longer a good bargain owing to the high municipal taxes. ‘‘There are no such taxes in AUDA areas like Satellite and Vastrapur, due to which all business is going that side,’’ says Ajay Mehta, a garment shop owner.

Vinod Shah, owner of V and U Garments, complains that ‘‘visibility’’ of shops is low and so they don’t attract customers. ‘‘There are so many traffic signals and congestion. Since it is the main artery connecting the new city with the old, there is a rush in the morning and evening of people in a hurry to get to office and home,’’ Shah says.

Republished from The Asian Age