HOW MANY TIMES have you walked into a resort like the Four Seasons and wondered how marvellous it would be to live in such luxury every day? A private chef to cook the menu of your choice, a personal assistant to cater to any need, a bathroom or powder room that feels like a curated spa and wellness retreat — all within the comfort of a high-rise apartment in your city of residence. Living the everyday life with a resort-like experience without the long wait for an expensive getaway. Branded residences promise exactly that.

After Dubai and London, an aspirational India might just be the next goldmine for the branded residence market. India’s millionaire households (net worth around ₹8.7 crore) almost doubled between 2021 and 2025, according to the Mercedes-Benz Hurun India Wealth Report released in September last year. The number of high-net-worth individuals has been rising at a breakneck speed. And so are their aspirations.

While sprawling mansions, soaring ceilings, manicured lawns, and private driveways continue to hold their allure, the appetite for refined, luxurious apartment living has grown just as strong. The result was numerous landmark high-rise luxury developments like DLF’s The Camellias, The Aralias, The Magnolias, and the upcoming The Dahlias in Gurugram, Three Sixty West by Oberoi Realty in Mumbai, and the Trump Towers in Mumbai, Pune, and Gurugram, which have redefined vertical luxury living.

But the urban elite is insatiable as they look for newer, more indulgent ways of living. That’s where branded residences — ultra-luxury homes anchored to globally renowned brands offering an elevated lifestyle experience — gains significance. With launches such as Trident Residences, Elie Saab, Jacob & Co. Residences, Four Seasons Private Residences, Westin Residences, and the Trump Towers, and more in the pipeline, the Indian urban elite is embracing an entirely new paradigm of ultra-luxurious living.

Mumbai and Delhi-NCR have emerged as the front-runners for such projects. While BI Luxury and The Oberoi Group have introduced Trident Residences in Delhi, M3M India is gearing up to unveil two additional Trump Towers, alongside Jacob & Co. Residences and an Elie Saab-branded residential project in Gurugram and Noida. Currently, Gurugram has two Trump Towers — Trump Towers Delhi NCR and Trump Residences Gurgaon. Westin Residences by Marriott is also set to make its Gurugram debut.

Redefining ultra luxury

Branded residences bring together global hotel, fashion, and lifestyle brands that not only lend credibility and aspiration but also assemble a host of facilities, such as refined and well-trained staff, luxurious foyers with a 5-star hotel-like front desk and service, multi-layer security, and furnishing and fittings that these brands endorse. Most regular high-end residences may not be able to offer these even if they tried.

The Billionaires’ Block, being developed within the Smart City Delhi Airport ecosystem on the Dwarka Expressway, is a prime example. “The first Elie Saab Residences is coming up here. There are six more ultra-high-end branded residences we’ve signed up that will be coming up in the area. The idea is to develop the 150 acres with branded residential projects,” says Pankaj Bansal, director, M3M India.

The developers focus on upgrading the standard by several notches. As a result, the perceived value of the project also goes up, Bansal says, citing the example of the first Trump Tower, which commanded a 40% premium at launch. “It is also because everything, including the construction discipline, building design, furniture and fittings, club amenities, etc., is looked at closely by the brands’ teams. The most important thing is how it will be maintained long after the deliveries,” Bansal explains. “The real-time project starts when these branded residences are delivered, not before.”

Partnership with renowned names in hospitality, fashion or automotive brings in design philosophy, quality standards, access to impeccable services that reflect the brand’s ethos, offering unique experiences. “They are a class apart when it comes to design and services offered. While travelling, we come across so many such branded residences in Singapore, Hong Kong, London, etc. that I proposed this idea to [the late] Mr Oberoi (P.R.S. Oberoi, the former executive chairman of EIH Ltd, the flagship company of The Oberoi Group). He came to the location, looked around, and immediately gave his go-ahead,” says Shashank Bhagat, chairman of the BI Group. Bhagat partnered with the Oberoi Group to launch the Trident Residences, right next to The Oberoi, New Delhi. “With The Oberoi hotels topping the charts in all global hospitality rating indices and given our close relationship with the family, it was a natural choice, and the concept of the Trident Residences was born,” Bhagat adds. “We have 19 apartments. We deliberately kept the number small as we wanted to build larger and luxurious apartments.”

Bansal says the brand teams are well-versed with the tastes and customer preferences of each country. “They are well-travelled and understand what works in different regions. They know what the preferences will be in the next five years and work with that in mind. These brands are particular about the post-production maintenance and services for a considerably long period,” he elaborates.

While developing a branded residence, the developer strictly adheres to the respective brand’s design and construction discipline. Incorporating local design flavours is not impossible. But it cannot come at the cost of the design ethos of the international brand. “For instance, the Elie Saab Residences that are coming up in Gurugram and Noida. Everything that you will see, from the lobby to the apartments, is provided by the brand,” says Bansal. The residences also come with staff trained by these brands. “Our staff are trained by The Oberoi Group so that the residents can definitely expect the same world-class service that the group is known for,” Bhagat adds.

Branded residences can be standalone, part of mixed-use developments (hotel/residences like Bengaluru’s Four Seasons or Mumbai’s Grand Hyatt), or fractional ownership. The concept is a status symbol for affluent buyers seeking prestige and a hassle-free lifestyle. Says Bhagat, “Initially, it was all part of five-star hotels where the facilities of the hotel complemented the apartments attached to it. Now, they are within the proximity of the star hotel, as is the case with the Trident Residences in New Delhi. Some of the facilities of the hotel can be accessed by those who live in the residences.”

Although different from each other, The Trident Residences in Delhi offer three- and four-bedroom configurations. “While 200 apartments in Noida will be around 4,000 sq. feet, 250-odd apartments in Gurugram will be larger, in the 5,000-6,000 sq. ft range,” Bansal says. Jacob & Co. Residences will be larger at around 6,500 sq. ft. With the successful Delhi launch, the BI group is poised for more launches. “We are in talks with The Oberoi Group for expansion. We’re planning to launch Thomas Goode Residences also in due course,” Bhagat says.

Developers are now looking beyond Delhi-NCR and Mumbai. While the Embassy Group brought Four Seasons Residences to Bengaluru, Mumbai-based Della Townships says it is in talks with international names such as Bugatti Home, Trussardi Home, and MAYRLIFE Medical Health Resort to integrate branded residences and wellness-focussed concepts in its 11 upcoming townships in India. “These projects include themes such as racecourse, golf course, racing course, etc. with wellness centres in collaboration with MAYRLIFE. And each of these will also have a high-rise branded residence project,” says Jimmy Mistry, founder and CMD of Della Townships. “Projects are underway in Pune, Raipur, Nagpur, Tirupati, Amaravati, Sirmaur, Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, etc.,” he adds.

As India’s luxury housing market matures, branded residences are fast emerging as its most aspirational frontier where real estate meets the world’s finest hospitality, fashion, and lifestyle brands to create homes that go far beyond brick and mortar. For discerning buyers, these residences offer not just an address, but an ecosystem of prestige, personalised service, and global design sensibility. With developers and international brands doubling down on long-term partnerships and impeccable standards, the concept is poised to reshape urban skylines and redefine what it means to live well in India ushering in an era where luxury is no longer just owned, but truly experienced.