Appliances lead Eid sales

Electronics retailers expect to log better sales ahead of Eid-ul-Azha but clothing traders say consumer sentiment still remains mixed.

“Market sentiments are positive. We are receiving good response,” said Md Raziur Rahman, deputy manager (public relations) of Singer Bangladesh Ltd, an appliance seller.

Sector people said many consumers spend much of their Eid budget to buy electronics products, especially refrigerators, to preserve meat of sacrificial animals.

A portion of consumer spending also goes for buying television and other appliances, they added.

"Many consumers buy refrigerator, freezer and television during this period which in turn helps us register higher sales," said Jafrul Alam Khan, national sales manager of Transcom Electronics Ltd.

“The demand recorded a rise in sales this month compared to a month ago. We hope to see a boost in sales in the remaining days prior to the festival,” he added.

Hasan Iqbal, deputy general manager (sales) of Butterfly Marketing Ltd, expects that sales of electronics goods would go up this time because of a rise in pay scale for public servants. The return of a democratic government will also help boost consumer confidence, he said.

However the demand for clothing is yet to pick up, with some retailers still finding the sales low.

“Till date, sales remain very slow although there is a less than a week left before Eid,” said Md Anwar Hossain of a readymade garment retailer and wholesaler, Fashion Palace, which has six outlets in different shopping malls in Dhaka.

“Except for our outlet at Bashundhara City, sales in other showrooms are gloomy,” he said.

However several local fashion houses said they have started to post a rise in sales.

One of the reasons for slack demand for clothing during Eid-ul-Azha, as fashion houses said, is the rise in other festivals such as Pahela Baishakh and different other days that have caused a shift in buying plans of many consumers.

The other factor, they said, is the shopping hour, 10am-8pm, that cuts the shopping time of a number of potential customers, mainly office-goers.

“Usually we do not record the same amount of sales during this period as of Eid-ul-Fitr. The pressure of buying for the season has declined over time,” said Kakan Aditya, managing partner of Deshal, a local fashion house.

He however said sales increased in the last couple of days.

Sohail Chowdhury, senior executive of Aarong, also said they are receiving a good pull of costumers.

“We see a rise in shoppers' movement but not that much as we witnessed last year. The overall market appears to be depressed a bit,” said Khalid Mahmood Khan, director of another fashion house, Kay Kraft.

“But we are hopeful that people will spend on buying new clothes in the days prior to the festival,” he added.

sohel@thedailystar.net