A display section of The Team, an all-in-one interior mall opening shortly on Orphangunge Road. Pictures by Pabitra Das

Tired of running around to put together that dream home? A one-stop interiors mall can put an end to your ?house hunt?. To be opened shortly on 30B Orphangunge Road (near Taj Bengal), it promises to pack in everything from furniture, floor and wall treatment to accessories like throws, bedcovers, artificial flowers and even paintings.

The three-storey shop stop, spread over 22,000 sq ft, is the first of its kind in Calcutta. It is targeting the regular customers, interior designer and architects alike. ?The interior designer business has changed over the years. Earlier, the designers used to make everything at the site, whereas now they do part of the elevation work and buy the rest of the furniture, fittings and accessories from other places. That?s where we come into the picture,? says manufacturer and exporter Amit K. Choudhary, who came up with the concept along with interior designer Ajit Jain.

A joint venture project called The Team, the mall has 11 members in all. Bath fittings are provided by Bath D?cor, lighting by Crescentlite, fire safety measures and EPBX Systems by Dinesh Enterprises (P) Ltd, artificial flowers by Elen Blossoms & Greens, Hitachi air-conditioners and refrigerators from Golden Refrigeration Co., hardware by King Hardware, mattresses by Raunak, furnishings from Skipper Furnishings, veneers and laminates from Sree Ram Sales Agency, designer furniture and other accessories from Choudhary?s Art Collection, and consultancy by Jain?s Studio WB.

A single chair costs something between Rs 2,500 and Rs 7,000 and a double bed is priced between Rs 20,000 and Rs 45,000. Choudhary, however, is confident of a steady demand even if the mall is located in a dingy lane off the Zeerut Bridge. ?A lot of real estate is coming up in Calcutta and the demand for good interiors is only likely to grow, more so when we are the first players to offer the customer a one-stop interior solution,? feels Choudhary.

The Team?s USP is customised furniture and treatments and accessories, made by in-house craftsmen and designers. Use of imported fabrics, laminates and ingenuous imagination gives the mall an edge to come up with funky furniture and finishes like leather covered consoles, metallic laminates and reverse carvings. Huge round and oval mirrors fitted in a single wooden frame with in-built lighting around the rim and LED lights inside a bar cabinet are just some of the innovative products on display, which can be replicated and delivered from their retail showrooms on demand. ?These are just the samples, we can make things exactly according to the customer specifications and guidelines,? assures Choudhary.

Another attractive feature at the mall would be expert advice by designer Ajit Jain, which will come free for The Team?s privilege members. ?Even regular customers can avail of free advice by trained staff at the mall on details like colour co-ordination and space-saving techniques,? says Choudhary.