Low sales ahead of Diwali irk retailers

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, October 16

Employees of a leading apparel brand on the prime Mall Road in the city wistfully look across the glass door of the shop, expecting a customer.

This scenario was hardly visible a few days ahead of the festival of Diwali in the city. A garment store owner, Navdeep Singh, said the sentiments of customers remained negative and they avoided shopping for apparels this time. He said it was not possible to ascertain the real quantum of low sales as compared to last year, but it was really on the low side.

He held the GST and demonetisation responsible for the slowdown, adding that short supply of liquidity spurred the slowdown.

A leading jeweller, Harjinder Singh Kanda, said customers were seen low on confidence this time and avoided investing large amounts in gold ornaments.

The proprietor of a leading brand’s showroom, Harinder Singh, said the overall sentiment was weak in the market this time and low sales were recorded. Unlike the rest of the city’s market, his showroom recorded good sales, thanks to good discounts and schemes, launched by the company, he said.

Varun Mehra of a leading electronic gadget showroom said the response of the customers towards fancy electronic items remained tepid. Unlike previous years, the footfall of customers was low. He stated that 40 per cent lower sales were reported this year.