The growing purchasing power of Bangladeshi consumers gave a tremendous boost to its retail trade in recent years, said economists, retailers as well as top lifestyle brand business houses.
An obvious upshot is a huge festival economy, they said.
Eid time sales, they said, were an eloquent testimony to the rising strength of the national economy.
No doubt, the growing purchasing power of Bangladeshi consumers, they said, supports the vibrant festival economy.
The increasing demand for branded products, they said, sustain the posh shopping malls.
According to Professor Mustafizur Rahman, executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue, a significant portion of country’s retail sales worth nearly Tk one lakh crore take place at Eid time.
Trade, retail and wholesale, contributed approximately 14 per cent to Gross Domestic Product worth Tk 6, 87,000 crore in fiscal 2009-10, according to Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics,
An ever growing domestic production and festival sales, said economists, indicate the rising strength of Bangladesh’s economy and the growing purchasing power of the consumers.
Mustafiz said that many people also save round the year so that they could buy more at festival time.
Besides, he said, festival bonus and increased remittance sent by Bangladeshis from abroad also boosted spending at festivals.
Masrur Chowdhury, vice-president of the Bangladesh Super Markets Association said festival shopping had been seeing a rapid growth in recent years.
The middle class’ people used to buy apparels for family members at Eid times 10 or 12 years ago.
No more, he said. For years, they have been buying extra items like tableware, home decors and many more unconventional items.
Chowdhury, who heads Nandan, a well-known chain, selling grocery items, beauty care and household products, said Eid shopping had at least trebled the sales of retailers.
Mir Nizamuddin Ahmed, a director of Federation of Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that festival sales only reflect the growing purchasing power of consumers.
The country’s festival sales, he said, would surpass the developed economies with small populations.
Nizam, who owns Zara, a posh fashion retail outlet, said that the sale lifestyle products like apparels and beauty care products, accounting for more than 50 per cent of the aggregate sales, grew tremendously in recent years.
Tamara Abed, director of Brac’s retail social enterprise Aarong, said that the sale of fashion and life style products witnessed a high growth of 20 to 22 per cent in recent years.
She said that middle class shoppers buy branded life style products round the year and the lower middle class shoppers also buy them at festivals
Tamara said that people now spend much on a wide variety of gift items and home decors.
