Lucknow, Oct 12 (IANS) The Lulu Group is all set to launch its next hyper mall in Noida apart from opening small-scale retail malls in five more cities in a phased manner.

The decision has been taken after sensing growth opportunities in the regional centres of Uttar Pradesh.

Senior executives from the company said that Kanpur, Gorakhpur, Varanasi, Prayagraj and Jhansi had been shortlisted for further expansion of the retail business in the state.

Noida has been shortlisted as the destination where another mall spanning over 14-to-15-acre wide area, is going to come up.

The diversified group which is into retail, food processing among other sectors is also contemplating to set up satellite stores in more locations in Lucknow to cater to more consumers.

"We are exploring the idea of setting up more hypermarket stores within Lucknow. With a packed schedule it is not easy to commute beyond office hours and a store in the neighbourhood would be helpful to such customers," said Jaya Kumar Gangadharan, director, Lulu Mall, Lucknow.

Launched in July last year, the hypermarket in Lucknow generates the highest footfall for the group among its half a dozen such malls in the country.

On a daily basis, 40,000 to 50,000 individuals, including families from the eastern UP, Nepal and other parts of the state, visit the property.

The business and daily footfall are expected to go up by 30 per cent during the upcoming festival season compared to the last one, said Gangadharan.

"During the last season, the daily footfall in the mall ranged between 25,000 to 35,000. At present, Lucknow property attracts the largest number of patrons in the country," he added.

General manager of the hypermarket in Lucknow, Noman Aziz Khan revealed that ready-to-eat food items, particularly chaat counters, attract the highest number of visitors. From Thursday, the hypermarket will start its festive celebrations.