Mumbai, Dec 13: Nexus Select Malls, one of India’s largest mall players today celebrated RED Day- Retail Employees’ Day by felicitating over 1,600 frontline staff who have successfully completed the 12-month certification programme under Aarunya, the pioneering upskilling initiative launched by Nexus Select Malls in partnership with Medhavi Skills University (MSU).

RED Day, observed globally on 12th December, is dedicated to recognizing the contribution of the retail workforce. This year, Nexus Select Malls marked the occasion by awarding frontline staff an academically recognised, co-branded Certificate in Mall Operations, underscoring the organisation’s commitment to raising service excellence across its nationwide portfolio.

Aarunya is India’s first co-created and university-recognised programme in Mall Management, developed in line with UGC guidelines and the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. The initiative introduces a formal and standardised learning pathway for India’s frontline retail teams.

Over the past year, over 1600 employees across 19 Nexus malls cleared assessments conducted entirely by meeting standardised benchmarks across theory and practical modules. Aarunya strengthens Nexus Select Malls’ commitment to building a skilled, future-ready retail workforce through academically backed, standardised training across the portfolio, ensuring certification excellence aligned with Nexus 2.0 vision of leading the industry through superior service standards.
Beyond the Certificate in Mall Operations, Aarunya offers a full academic progression pathway designed to elevate India’s mall management capability. Under the partnership with MSU, Nexus frontline employees will have access to Diploma in Vocational Education (D.Voc) in Mall Management, a 2 year comprehensive programme and a Bachelor of Vocational Education (B.Voc) in Mall Management, India’s first structured 3 year undergraduate degree focused exclusively on mall management, combining academic rigour with apprenticeship-based learning across the Nexus portfolio of malls.

Participants have shared highly positive feedback, noting greater confidence, improved customer interaction skills, and deeper alignment with Nexus’ culture and values. The certification enhances their career prospects both within and beyond the Nexus ecosystem due to its UGC-recognized status.
This establishes an end-to-end academic pathway, from certification to degree level, designed to build the country’s strongest and most consistent retail talent pipeline.