KARACHI, Oct 29: The shopping for Eid is gaining momentum after the first 20 days of Ramazan. People had been showing little interest in shopping for Eid following the deadly earthquake. Traders and market watchers say the late momentum will not help recover the financial losses as the number of buyers is too less as compared to the previous year.
As consumers were already in distress over the deaths in the earthquake, three bomb blasts hit Indian capital New Delhi on Saturday on the eve of Diwali in which at least 50 people were killed.
A number of shopkeepers say although people have come out to shop after 20 days but they are not showing enthusiasm this year.
They believe that majority of the buyers have yet to overcome the shock of over 55,000 deaths in the earthquake.
This year, the situation is quite different from the last year as many shopkeepers are seen sitting idle due to thin presence of late night bargain hunters.
Retailers at the Hyderi market said the market still lacks buyers.
At 1:15am many shopkeepers put down their shutters.
Shopkeepers at the Haroon and Erum Shopping Emporium in Buffer Zone said the market remained quite laggard in the afternoon and before Iftar as only genuine buyers were coming at these time. After Iftar, the market gathers momentum but a large number of buyers do window shopping.
Many leading producers of garments have offered a 20-50 per cent discount on sale of shalwar kamiz and kurta in the last days ahead of Eid to lure customers and clear the stocks which could not be cleared during the first 20 days of the holy month.
Currently, rush is increasing in shops of readymade shalwar kamiz, footwear, bangles and artificial jewellery.
Besides the earthquake which has hit consumers’ sentiments very deeply, the impact of other factors like increasing oil prices and inflation on the daily and monthly buying budget of the common man cannot be ignored. But many people say that Eid excels other religious festivities in which many people, who cannot manage extra money for Eid shopping from their daily burgeoning expenses, take credit to have clothes for their children.
Petrol and diesel are selling at Rs56.29 and Rs37.18 per litre in October 2005 as compared to Rs36.92 and Rs24.37 in October last, up by Rs19.37 and Rs13.81 per litre respectively. Inflation from January 2005 to September 2005 has also risen by 7 per cent.
“It is only the earthquake that has virtually shattered the buying sentiment of consumers instead of petrol and diesel price hike,” said Mohammad Sohail, head of research, Jehangir Siddiqui Research.
People have enough liquidity but their mood has changed to agony from ecstasy after the earthquake. “If people are buying costly cars, houses and other luxurious items then why they cannot buy new clothes. Current problem is the change of mindset of buyers,” Mr Sohail said.
“I think sales are low by 20-25 per cent in the markets this year from the last year,” he said, adding that buyers’ turnout in the markets has improved in the last two days as it appears that people are coming out of the earthquake shock but the real passion of buying is still lacking.
The director of the Bonanza Garments Industries, Hanif Bilwani, offered a different view, saying his sales in Karachi had surged by 15 per cent from the last year as compared to a fall of 20 per cent in Rawalpindi. While sales in Lahore have been the same as last year.
“We expect an increase of 20-25 per cent every year in our overall sales but this year sales at all stores did not pick up simultaneously because it remained average or slow in the first 20 days of Ramazan in other stations,” he said.
Mr Bilwani ruled out the impact of blasts in the Indian capital on local shopping areas as far as sales were concerned, saying this was not a big blow than what the people of Pakistan were currently facing. “I think sales will maintain the normal course,” he added.
The owner of departmental stores, Wardrobe and Delhi House, Mohammad Nasim Arfeen, said the market was improving for the last two to three days after a late pick up but the sales were still low by 25-30 per cent this year as compared to the last year. “Usually sales start picking up on eighth or 10th of Ramazan but it got late and started picking up from 18th of Ramazan this year,” he added.
He said one thing was certain that people were not doing extra shopping this year and they preferred to have cheaper quality also. He added that people were more concerned to have clothes for their children first and many thought that they would feel no harm in wearing old clothes.
Ms Arfeen ruled out a negative impact on the Karachi market in the aftermath of Delhi blasts, saying the countrymen were more concerned about domestic issues than in neighbouring country.
The owner of Sanaullah Departmental Stores, Zakir Zaki, pointed out a drop of 5-10 per cent in sales from the last year.
He said 80 per cent of sales were now restricted to children garments as most people were avoiding to carry out extra shopping this year. He said people were doing shopping as per their requirement.
A leading children garment shop owner in Dolmen Mall on the Tariq Road, said even sales of children garments had declined by 25 per cent as compared to the last year. People were coming but their attendance could not be matched with the higher number of the last year, he added. He also did not see any impact of the Delhi blasts on the Pakistani market, saying people were stuck in quake-related issues more seriously.
Even the Site Eid Bachat Bazaar, an annual event organized by the Site Association of Industry, also had fewer buyers this year.
The chief coordinator of the Bachat Bazaar, Rauf A. Sattar, said sales had declined by 35 per cent from the last year.
The bazaar started on Oct 8 when the earthquake hit various parts of the country. The event ended on Oct 19 but buyers did not turn in large numbers as compared to the last year though stalls had been booked ahead of Ramazan, Mr Sattar said.
