“United Group has quite a number of properties in the city, so we decided that we wanted to become more involved in our buildings," says Malik Talha, one of the Directors of United Group who is involved in the Unimart project. "We really wanted to set newer standards in terms of the use of commercial spaces. The biggest constraint to a hypermarket this size is the lack of available space, and since we had that space, we decided to go for it." Gulshan Centre Point, the state-of-the-art commercial and office building in which Unimart is situated, boasts 500 car parking spaces.

A "hypermarket" is defined as a retail space that combines a grocery supermarket and a department store, offering a large variety of products. In literal terms, it's where you can pretty much get whatever it is that you need on a day to day basis. The implications are huge, and Unimart does not disappoint. The moment you enter, you are greeted with the irresistible aroma of the bakery, which serves both sweet and savoury delights baked right there by the staff. No preservatives are added to any of the baked items, and expiry dates are adhered to in order to maintain the quality. Homemade traditional sweetmeats and a plethora of ice cream flavours are at your disposal. You can enjoy these items on the spot by taking a seat at Hanover St Café, which has been established in collaboration with Dhaka's favourite coffee brewers, North End Coffee Roasters. On the other side you have a Samsung stall as well, hosting the latest Samsung models of smartphones and tablets.
The department store aspect of Unimart comes into play first; more technically called the "non perishable goods section." You can get clothes, shoes, exercise equipment, stationary, gift items, kitchenware, toys and cosmetics in the first few aisles. Unimart sets themselves apart by carrying additional items that you also might need but don't really know where to get such as pet food and accessories (bowls, collars, leashes), babies' furniture items, do-it-yourself hardware tools and international toy brands such as Barbie and Fisher Price. In fact, Unimart has the largest toy collection you will find in Gulshan.

In terms of electronics, apart from the Smartphone Café, Unimart has all the small appliances you need as you start a household, such as microwaves, ovens, blenders etc. as well as electronics required for grooming such as hair straighteners, shavers and trimmers.
Once you are done roaming around the "non-perishable" section to your heart's content and it's time to get back to business, you will be greeted by the "perishable" section, namely groceries. All the things that you find in a grocery supermarket are of course present, but Unimart is all about the additional perks. There is a section nicknamed "foreign cooking", where you will get all the variations of sauces, noodles and canned items from all around the world that you could possibly need to inspire your inner Masterchef. Speaking of which, you will also find Bangladesh's only stock of fresh herbs such as rosemary, parsley and dill.

Aside from the local fresh produce, there is also a section of fruits and vegetables which are flown in from Thailand. Groceries are tested for formalin daily using the Formalin Detection Meter.
Unimart stocks organic honey, ghee, rice and dried rice. There is also a fresh fish tank beside the fish and meat sections, with specialty meats such as quail and goose as well as steak cuts. Unimart also stocks its own original recipe of flavoured "spicy cheeses" made by and for Unimart.
For Ramadan, Unimart will also stock some exotic Iftar items and have already flown in high quality dates from abroad, including the famously expensive and exclusive "Ajwah Madina" dates. Fresh fruit juices will also be available.
Other unique items include floral arrangements by Ikebana, Archies' cards, a gift wrapping corner, eyewear, Bonsai and crafted bags. Ikebana is a Bangladeshi contracting, landscaping, floral and event services firm that has been around since 1992. Ikebana's stall at Unimart has gift items like pot pourri, floral arrangements (both artificial and fresh flowers), decoration pieces, flower vases, cactus plants and table fountains. Ikebana's owners Nilufar Farooq and Inu Shamsuddin are very excited to be a part of Unimart and its mission to promote local vendors.
“We are hoping to achieve international HACCP standards that govern the quality benchmarks of manufacturing and retail procedures every step of the way,” says T.D Packir, CEO of Unimart, who was one of the pioneers of the Bangladeshi supermarket industry and has extensive experience in supermarkets both in Bangladesh and abroad. “Our concept was to think up 10 good reasons why people should shop here. People should not have to go to 5 different places to buy all the things that they need. We even sat down with other supermarket owners to get advice.”
“Here at Unimart, we aim to sell convenience,” adds Malik. “You can buy high-quality products at good prices. We don't want to get into price competitions, because that will hamper the quality of the products and in the end the customers will lose out.”
Unimart hopes to elevate the standards expected from the supermarket industry. Nowadays there are more women working and less servants hired, so the era of “self-help” has led to the need for a whole new range of products. Unimart also hopes to promote local vendors through their space, and take any feedback they get very seriously. In the end, Unimart wants to provide a relaxed, cheerful shopping experience to its customers. You can take some time for yourself and explore all the different aspects of this hypermarket, and you don't need to feel too guilty at the end of it because you can run all your grocery errands before you head back home!
Visit Unimart at: Gulshan Centre Point, Road 90, Gulshan 2, Dhaka 1212

Open everyday from 9am to 9pm.