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EID

Shoppers in midnight quiet

Sohel Parvez
Nila's eyes glittered with delight. The reason, another year has been added to her untiring shopping not only for herself but for children also. And it is more than 30 years she has been doing it.
Her role at age 60 is now of a grandma.
It explains the reason why the woman, seemingly weighed down by the burden of age, took the trouble of shopping in the midnight.
It was few minutes past midnight. Nila and her 40-year-old daughter-in-law Jotsna entered a boutique shop and began moving from one corner to another. They searched for a panjabi for Nila's son, the husband of Jotsna, to wear on Eid.
"It's tiresome for me to shop during daytime when one is obliged to move through the crowd. But, midnight is a good time for shopping as there are fewer shoppers," said Nila, while she examined the design of an off-white colour Khadi-panjabi at the Sobhanbag boutique shop of one of the leading boutique houses Kay Kraft.
Nila started buying clothes for her children since her young age. The habit has continued to the present day as her children --although they have become parents now -- still love to wear the dresses chosen and bought by their mother.
"We all like her choice; her selections are really nice," said Jotsna, referringtohermother-in-law.
Spending some more minutes on their search, the two women finally selected a panjabi of off-white colour, paid the bill, and walked out of the shop. The road by that time was quiet with thin traffic and few Eid shoppers: a picture different from the daytime buzz when city roads are jammed with vehicles.
Daytime traffic has forced many shoppers to opt for midnight to buy gifts, mainly clothes, for their loved ones. They are able to do their shopping with more comfort and less hassle in late night hours.
“It's much relaxing to shop late night If you come out for shopping
in the daytime, you will have to wait for hours to pass a small distance to the shopping centres," said Mahbubur Rahman, a businessman who was found busy with his family members at Shoppers World in Gulshan, a half hour past midnight.
"It's unbearable to waste fuel in times of high fuel prices," Mahbubur Rahman said, adding that roads remain free from traffic while crowds in the shops also remain thin late night.
"Shopping this time helps me complete my day's work at the office," he said.
Many people like Rahman go out for Eid shopping with their families or friends after Iftari and evening prayers.
Office goers, small and mid-level entrepreneurs, and salespersons prefer to shop late night due to time constraints at day hours.
The presence of customers encourages retailers of clothes, shoes and cosmetics to remain open during late night hours. It helps them boost sales ahead of Eid, which generates the bulk of yearly revenue of a number of sectors.
"Midnight customers are the real ones. They come for buying, instead of window shopping that you would see during the daytime," said a salesperson at Shoppers World, a high-end retail outlet for Bollywood-based trendy items.
Window shoppers could be seen everywhere - from Shoppers World to New Market -- as many feel squeezes on their pockets due to high prices, driven by rising inflationary pressure. Inflation rose to 10.82 percent in July from 10.04 percent a month ago.
"Are you joking with me?" said Miraz, a shopper, with annoyance who had to abandon his plan for buying a shirt as the salesman asked for a price that was beyond his reach.
Miraz, also a salesman ^t a wayside shop at the New Market area, went out to purchase a shirt after his engagement for the day. He offered Tk 100 for the shirt, but the salesman did not agree.
"Gone are those days when you could haggle." he said. "PayTk 200 or leave," said the salesman on an emphatic note.
Shamima, wife of an electrician in Chawkbazar of Old Dhaka, also faced a similar situation.
She returned home without buying anything for her daughters, as the prices of their preferred clothes exceeded her budget.
Retailers said high price has dampened buying mood of many customers. The governments move to ration electricity also created confusion on whether markets should remain open or not.
"The flow of buyers has declined. A couple of years ago, we saw customers enter the market late night in great numbers. Now the flow of tile buyers seems insignificant," said Shahdat Hossain, a tailor at t he Gauchhia market in Dhaka.
"Two years ago, shops remained open and received buyers until 2 o'clock in the night. Now, most of us are preparing to close right after midnight," he said.
However buyers, mainly the youngsters, come in flocks at midnight to have fun and buy the trendy clothes.
“I have bought three shirts and trousers today and will buy two more tomorrow," said Akhter, who came from Dohar of Dhaka district with friends for Eid shopping. "It's easier for me to spend more as two of my brothers work in the Middle East," he said.
Akhter may buy more clothes the following day on his brother's money sent from the Middle East.
But it is unknown whether rickshaw puller Alamgir was able to earn Tk 1,000 more to buy Eid gifts for his father and two younger brothers, living in a remote village in the northern district of Bogra.
Since September 24, he started to pull a rickshaw until midnight to make his dream come true. He planned to buy a shirt for himself if he could earn more.
"I have a panjabi and trousers. It will be nice to have a new shirt this time,” said Alamgir.
sohel@thedailystar.net