Penelope Cruz in one of her designs for Mango, a brand coming to The Courtyard

The retail brandwagon is ready to trundle back into town, after a downturn-induced pause, with the debut of Mango and DKNY driving the Rs 50-crore annexe of Forum.

Joining the Spanish fashion-retail giant and New York’s iconic label at The Courtyard on Elgin Road in February will be French fashion brand Promod, Canadian shoes and accessories biggie Aldo, Esprit and Sunglass Hut. Also in the brand bag are Charles & Keith, Tie Rack, Mothercare, Alcott, Boggi, The Body Shop, Puma and Chemistry.

Coming within months of losing Marks & Spencer — at Avani Heights on Chowringhee — the city will be looking at shrugging off the tag of “backwater for brands” in the New Year with The Courtyard taking the lead.

“We feel Calcutta is now ready for all these top-notch brands,” said Rahul Saraf, the managing director of Forum Projects. “When we launched Forum (in 2002), organised retail was in its infancy in Calcutta. Other malls have opened since, offering a wide array of options. The initial euphoria is making way for maturity and Courtyard is conceptualised to cater to this fast maturing market.”

The likes of Mango — which has even collaborated with Spanish star Penelope Cruz for a collection — coming to town is huge for any fashion follower. “Oh, wow!” was June’s first reaction. “This is great news. I am most excited about Mango and Promod coming because it saves me many shopping trips to Bangkok,” added the actress.

Serial (outstation) shopper Mridula Agarwal, 29, is already drawing up her Courtyard shopping list — handbag from DKNY, relaxed tees from Esprit, sunglasses and vests from Mango, platforms from Aldo, ankle-boots from Charles & Keith, cotton blouses from Promod.

The Courtyard, designed by J.P. Agrawal, will offer 45,000 square feet of retail racks with a wraparound multi-level car park of 380 slots. “Since the movie traffic is routed through the main Forum, we are trying to house most impulse-buy brands there, while the destination brands will be seeded in the Courtyard annexe,” says Subir Das, the deputy general manager of Forum Projects.