Indian apparel tycoon Harish Ahuja buys luxury home in London’s Notting Hill for US$27 million

An Indian tycoon behind an apparel empire has just paid £21 million (US$27 million) for a home in London’s Notting Hill district, marking one of this year’s biggest UK residential deals that defied a wider slowdown in luxury sales.

Harish Ahuja, who owns and runs Shahi Exports Pvt., bought the eight-storey residential convent in July, according to a UK filing. His son Anand Ahuja and daughter-in-law Sonam Kapoor – a Bollywood star – plan to use part of the sprawling property as the couple’s home following redevelopment, while a separate section of the building is likely to be converted into flats, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified discussing the family’s plans.

The property offering more than 20,000 square feet of space is a short walk from Kensington Gardens and was previously owned by a UK-registered charity and religious order, according to a brochure seen by Bloomberg News.

The media team at Shahi Exports and the firm’s company secretary did not respond to emails seeking comment.

The home bought by Ahuja is one of only a handful that changed hands for more than £20 million this year, including a £27 million Mayfair mansion sold at a 33 per cent discount by art collector-oil tycoon couple Fatima and Eskandar Maleki. However, the share of prime central London homes bought by Indians rose 3 per cent between 2019 and 2023, the most in that period for any single nationality, according to data from broker Hamptons International.

Earlier this month, separate Indian buyers snapped up flats in Mayfair for £7.85 million and £9.15 million. The first one once belonged to countess Raine Spencer, the stepmother of the late princess Diana. Peter Wetherell, the broker involved in the deals, expects more Indian buyers in London due to rising wealth in the Asian nation and a desire to spread real estate assets across the globe.