Home ›› 27 Apr 2022 ›› Front
As Eid-ul-Fitr is a little more than a week away, shopping for the festival has gained momentum in the capital’s Bailey Road, with stores in the area witnessing high footfall every day.
Store owners in Bailey Road have decorated their shops with multi-colour lights and other items to attract consumers. There are various stores selling a wide range of products.
Traders said this year’s Eid shopping scene was different as the absence of Covid-19 restrictions after two years was drawing massive crowds. They hope shopping will gather steam as Eid approaches.
Mohammad Salman Khan, manager of Capital Siraj Centre shopping mall, said, “We are getting a lot of visitors compared to the last two years. In 2020 and 2021, the pandemic greatly hampered business. As the pandemic situation has improved, people are coming to markets and shopping malls in large numbers, boosting business.”
The shopping mall has around 80 shops. Salman said store owners were happy with the high presence of customers.
Mohammad Mozammel, a salesperson at Raiyana at Navana Baily Star mall, said, they mainly sell women’s clothing, including saree, salwar kameez, burqa, and scarf. He said a large number of female shoppers were visiting the store every day.
“Eid shopping remained dull in the last two years, but now it is gaining momentum,” he added.
Tangail Saree Kutir is one of the most popular and oldest saree stores in the capital. Its Executive Ruma Ghosh said they mainly sell locally made handloom sarees, including Jamdani, cotton silk, Katan, half silk, and block print.
“The present sales volume ahead of Eid is satisfactory. Our shop is open from 10:30am to 11pm every day. We have different types of saree, ranging from Tk 1,000 to Tk 4 lakh.”
Nazmul Islam, assistant manager at Infinity Mega Mall’s Bailey Road outlet, told The Business Post they have huge collections for both male and female shoppers, including blazer, shirt, T-shirt, panjabi, sherwani, pants, saree, salwar kameez, bag, and shoe.
“Our sales have increased, especially that of panjabi, compared to other months of the year. Regular fit and slim fit panjabi have high demand among consumers. Panjabi prices range between Tk 1,500 and Tk 17,500,” he added.
Meanwhile, some shoppers complained about high prices, especially of women and kids wear.
One of them, Barsha Nazmi, said, “A wide variety of women’s clothes are available at the Bailey Road markets, but prices are higher compared to other areas in the city.”
Female shoppers mostly crowded shops selling cosmetics, artificial jewellery, and other items. Many stores offering 20-50 per cent discounts on various products attracted a large number of customers.
