KARACHI, Oct 21: Majority of market players and businessmen believe that the pre-Eid business this year has increased by 10-20 per cent as compared to the last year. Others reject this view and claim that sales this year have dropped by 20-50 per cent as fixed income group takes beating from inflation and were driven out of the market.
As far as prices are concerned industrialists maintain that they have not increased the prices of garments and clothes. They accused the retailers of increasing the rates arbitrarily during the period preceding Eidul Fitr.
Many people complete their shopping in the early days of Ramazan to avoid rush and get good bargain, but they had to put up with old stuff as retailers usually bring new stuff (garments and accessories) in the last days of the holy month and price them the way they wish.
One of the main reasons of high buyers’ turnout at bazaars and shopping centres was said to be an improved law and order during the holy month and secured parking arrangements.
The rush and buyers’ enthusiasm, however, indicate that inflation has not deterred the passion for shopping at Eid. Some on the lower end must have cut short their shopping list and restricted it to the needs of children to celebrate the happy occasion.There is no official or private forum that compiles data to quantify retail sales during Ramazan, but according to a garment producer’s estimates, a departmental store, covering an area of 2,000-2,500 sq-ft, recorded a turnover of Rs7-8 million in just 30 days of Ramazan.
As far as retailers are concerned they make equivalent of 11 months turnover during the holy month alone. Many shopkeepers made stereotype statements about the laggard sales during the holy month, perhaps for fear of income tax officials. Some were not as secretive.
Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ahmed of Lifestyle Store, Bank Road, Saddar, Rawalpindi Cantt, told Dawn that people had enough money and that was the reason that the sales are going at normal pace as compared to the last year’s depressed sales for first 20-25 days of Ramazan when a powerful earthquake had played havoc in the northern areas. Even in entire Rawalpindi, sales of shalwar kameez, kurta, shoes and other items have been going at a normal pace.
Shaharyar Buksh, owner of H. Karim Buksh Outlets in Lahore, said that one could not compare sales with last year when sentiments were low due to earthquake. “However, this year sales have been quite normal and so far there have been no complaints about any drop in sales.”Javed Riaz, managing director of Raja Saheb outlets in Lahore, told Dawn that sales were much better than last year, and even in other shopping areas in Lahore, sales were going at a normal pace.
Nasir Saleem, proprietor of Liberty Store at Bahadurabad, said that sales had been on the higher side by 10-20 per cent as compared to last year because of satisfactory law and order situation and better economic conditions. He claimed that majority of middle and upper middle class people throng Bahadurabad shops because of affordable prices as compared to other markets. He ruled that people refrain from going for big shopping this year.
Mohammad Nasim Aarfeen, owner of Wardrobe store in Bahadurabad and Delhi House store in Saddar, said sales had been going at an “average” and not at “normal” pace this year, despite huge hustle and bustle in the markets which literally lacked the presence of genuine buyers. It is the same pace of sales that had been recorded in the first 25 days of last Ramazan when consumers’ sentiments were shattered by massive killing of people and children in deadly earthquake. Last year, sales had picked up pace in the last five days before Eid.“Food buying comes first before making clothes. Unfortunately the meteoric hike in rates of grocery items is actually not allowing buyers to go wild for clothes and garments,” Mr Aarfeen said.
Cooperative Market Saddar President Mohammad Feroz said that sales of kurta and shalwar kameez were 20 per cent higher than last year. He said Indian kurta (finished and clothes) had stormed the markets, thus inflicting a blow to the sales of locally produced items. “I think more than 25,000 gents Indian kurtas and over 15,000 children kurtas have been sold in this Ramazan,” he said.Tariq Road Traders Action Committee President Siddique Memon said that sales this Ramazan had increased by 20 per cent as compared to the last year.
“Improved law and order situation and cheap and affordable prices of garments, shoes, clothes have pushed up retail sales this year,” Mr Siddique said, claiming that majority of Tariq Road shopkeepers are offering 20-25 per cent discount on items. He said the 32-year-old market, having 8,000 shops, 39 shopping centres and 43 different bazaars, lured customers because of price and variety.Mr Siddique said China had captured 90 per cent share in children garments, 95 per cent in shoes and 90 per cent share in imitation jewellery.
However, Bohra Bazar Market Association Yousuf Khan President said sales this Ramazan had lowered by 25-30 per cent as compared to the last year. He reckoned that the rush of buyers had gained pace but majority of them were window shoppers.
Abdul Samad Khan, senior vice-president of the Saddar Alliance of Market Association, claimed that the sales had dropped by 50 per cent as compared to the previous years owing to rising prices of kitchen items.
Industry players offer a different view. Bonanza Garments Industries Director Hanif Bilwani said that sales had increased by 15 per cent as compared to the last year’s lower turnout in the first 20 days and then recovered in the last 10 days.
Al Karam Textile Mills Director Rafeeq Ibrahim said that sales were better this year than last year’s average sales due to earthquake. However, he said that small and medium sized textile millers were feeling the pinch over the huge influx on Indian shalwar kurta fabrics and finished kurtas, as they had lost the market share.
He said actually retailers in the markets had lifted huge stocks of Indian fabric and customers because of their designs and colours. “Our local industry does not compete with Indian fabrics because of high cost of production,” he said, adding that after-effects of the Indian fabric arrivals would be witnessed after Eid.
KARACHI, Oct 21: Majority of market players and businessmen believe that the pre-Eid business this year has increased by 10-20 per cent as compared to the last year. Others reject this view and claim that sales this year have dropped by 20-50 per cent as fixed income group takes beating from inflation and were driven out of the market.
