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Retail outlets witness sharp decline in sales
SUKANTA HALDER
Sales at retail outlets and brand shops in Dhaka are yet to gain momentum as most customers are staying home in the face of uncertainty following Sheikh Hasina’s resignation from the post of prime minister on August 5.
Sales at different stores have declined by at least 50 percent to as high as 80 percent, and now they fear it may take another month or two to return to normalcy because of the changed political scenario.
The outlets started reopening on August 7 after a monthlong student movement seeking reforms to the quota system for government jobs. At the time, businesses were hit by an internet outage and curfew that restricted their operations until the fall of Hasina and her cabinet.
Popular lifestyle brand Apex reopened its outlet on Mazar Road in Dhaka’s Mirpur 1 on August 7, but sales are still nearly 30 percent less compared to any regular day, said Mohammad Monirul Islam, the manager of the showroom.
“We normally sell goods worth Tk 2 lakh every day. But since August 7, our average daily sales have hovered between Tk 1.2 lakh to Tk 1.4 lakh,” he added while pointing out that many people are refraining from purchases amid the ongoing economic uncertainty.
Islam also said the managers of several Apex outlets had closed their shops by 6:00pm on August 9 due to security concerns.
Rasel Ahmed, who operates a sari retail outlet at the Mukto Bangla Shopping Complex in Mirpur, said his store is seeing just 30 percent of its previous customer turnout.
“I think it will take more than two weeks for sales to spike,” he added.
An official of retail clothing brand Miclo said the average customer turnout at their Science Laboratory outlet has reached just 20 percent of its previous level since reopening on August 7.
The Science Laboratory area in Dhaka was one of the major places hit hard by the student movement.
“So, buyers are still suffering from some sort of fear. However, the eventual return of the police should ease the situation by helping buyers regain their confidence,” the official added.
A salesperson of the Science Laboratory outlet of popular lifestyle brand Aarong said the number of customers is 60 percent less compared to normal times.
Mohammad Akash, the manager of retail clothing brand Giordano, also pointed out the thin presence of buyers since the reopening of their outlet at the Bashundhara City shopping mall on August 9.
“Our sales have seen a drastic 90 percent fall,” he added.
Shafiqur Rahman, a salesman at a baby clothing and toy retail outlet at the same mall, said his shop has seen a 50 percent decline in customers over the past two days.
Bashir Ahmed, a buyer at Aarong’s Science Laboratory outlet, said he decided to venture out to the shop as the situation has become quite normal now.
But shopkeepers across the country are getting only 30 percent of their regular sales now, said Helal Uddin, president of the Bangladesh Shop Owners’ Association.
“We hope the situation will improve from next week,” he added.