Shop owners in Sylhet, Rangpur in a festive mood at last

Various businesses across the Rangpur and Sylhet regions are seeing an influx of customers ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr, which is likely to be celebrated on May 13 this year.

The demand for clothing items has soared in the two divisions, where traders are now struggling to keep up with the added orders.

As a result, workers at Benarashi Palli in Rangpur's Gangachara upazila, a region famous for its handmade saris, are practically putting in 24-hour shifts, according to traders.

Benarashi Palli houses around 72 handloom garment factories and it is just 12 kilometres away from Rangpur City. It is a popular shopping destination for locals.

Besides, the region's public transport system also benefits from increased customers as the city's affluent often use auto-rickshaws, taxis, and so on to visit factories and showrooms for Eid shopping.

Benarashi saris are known for their decorative multi-colour designs with the Jhut, Kota, Net, Chundari and Ranguli varieties being popular choices.

Other than physical sales, online sales have also picked up thanks to the saris' affordable prices.

As such, Benarashi Palli has become a vibrant place once again ahead of the country's biggest religious festival, which comes as a much needed change of pace considering how the coronavirus outbreak had decimated sales last year.

Other than traditional saris, there is high demand for three-pieces, Jamdani and silk saris as well.

Many traders in the area said that they are making affordable clothing for all quarters ahead of Eid.

Cheaper saris can be bought for between Tk 1,000 to Tk 3,000 while the high quality ones are priced between Tk 5,000 to Tk 12,000.

Similarly, each Jamdani sari is sold for between Tk 1,000 to Tk 9,000.

Farida Rahman, owner of Fyaz Benarashi, said their sales increased manifold at the wholesale and retail levels ahead of Eid.

"Shopping gained momentum when Ramadan began," she added.

However, many factories struggled to procure raw materials amid the ongoing nationwide lockdown aimed at curbing the spread of Covid-19.

Following a recent surge in coronavirus infections across the country, the government imposed a week-long lockdown on April 14.

Although the restrictions on public movement and other measures were eventually extended until May 16, shopping centres were allowed to reopen on April 25 in order to recover their Eid sales.

Nazmoon Nahar, a resident of Rangpur City, said she buys most of her clothing items from Benarashi Palli as products are cheaper here than that of shopping malls in the city.

Other than showrooms, roadside stalls have also seen a notable increase in customers.

Nishat Rahman, a roadside trader in Rangpur City, said he was concerned about customer turnout ahead of Eid due to the lockdown.

"It was a big challenge to collect the items to be sold but finally I succeeded," Rahman added.

Similarly, the major shopping areas in Sylhet, such as Zindabazar, Bandarbazar and Kumarpara, are bustling with activity.

Still though, local traders allege that this year's customer turnout is nowhere near pre-pandemic levels.

"Considering the complete loss incurred last year due to the pandemic, I bought more clothes this year, said Anwar Chowdhury, proprietor of Toha Fashion at Shukria Market in Zindabazar.

"But the closure of all shops until April 25 has already caused huge losses and so, we don't know if we can manage our expenses this season," he added.

On the other hand, Zaman Hadi, managing partner of Raison, a new fashion brand at Kumarpara, said that customer turnout had not reached satisfactory levels but was acceptable considering the pandemic situation.

"All businesses are incurring losses amid the ongoing crisis but since we were able to reopen this season, we may recover something by the end," said Mahi Uddin Ahmed Selim, president of the Nayasarak Business Association.

Subsequently, local tailors were also hit hard by the lockdown.

"We normally get orders in the first weeks of Ramadan but we were closed then due to the lockdown," said Isha Ahmed, a tailor at Nehar Market in Zindabazar.

"And even though we are open now, there is not enough time before Eid to make up for lost sales," she added.

The pandemic has also hurt spice sales ahead of Eid.

Pradip Paul, owner of MS Pradip Paul, a wholesale spice shop at Mahajan Patti, said that compared to any other Eid season, they are seeing less demand although prices are more stable now than ever before.

At retail, cinnamon is being sold at Tk 350-500 per kilogramme (kg), cardamom Tk 2,400-2,800 per kg, cloves Tk 900-1,050 per kg and raisin Tk 300-500 per kg.

Similarly, sales of consumer electronics such as refrigerators and televisions, which are usually in high demand ahead of EId, have collapsed.

Md Khurshed Alam, assistant director of the Walton office in Sylhet, said they usually witnesse huge sales before Eid but since the pandemic has affected peoples' earnings, the demand for luxury items such as electronics has almost completely vanished.

"This is not just the case for us as. All other companies are facing the same problem," he added.

Abu Taher Md Shoeb, president of the Sylhet Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), said the usual shopping trend before Eid has been lost.

Many traders invested more to recover last season's loss but it has not paid off in the end.

"All businesses have been affected as there is a chain reaction in the economy," Shoeb said.

"Some businesses have shifted online to ensure their survival but that is not possible for most traders who do business the traditional way," he added.

The SCCI president went on to say that the tourism sector in Sylhet has faced losses of Tk 2.5 crore to Tk 3 crore every day since the Covid-19 outbreak.

With this backdrop, Shoeb urged the government to reserve a bulk allocation for small and medium businesses.

"Stimulus funds won't work for small and medium businesses anyway as no one knows if everything will get back to normal and when they can repay," he said.

"They need bulk allocation to survive and that's crucial for the long term betterment of the economy," the SCCI president added.