Festive shopping sees an upswing after two years this Diwali

Mumbai After the pandemic-induced lull of the past two years, this festive season has seen an increase in sales from gold to dry fruit and even homes, industry bodies said

Mumbai After the pandemic-induced lull of the past two years, this festive season has seen an increase in sales from gold to dry fruit and even homes, industry bodies said.

Mumbai, India - October 21, 2022: Women buy gold ornaments inside a jewelley store during Diwali festival, at Kalbhadevi, in Mumbai, India, on Friday, October 21, 2022. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times) (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT PHOTO)

Dhanteras, considered by many Hindus to be an auspicious time to buy new items, has helped markets see an upswing in footfall and sales.

Gold sales are especially high this year, said Kumar Jain, the spokesperson for India Bullion and Jewellers Association, adding that sales may double the usual numbers and reach up to ₹500 to 550 crore on October 22, which is the first day of the two-day Dhanteras festival this year. “Besides Diwali, there is an increase in shopping for gold jewellery for the upcoming wedding season,” he said.

“In the showrooms, people are buying more affordable and wearable jewellery. Many jewellers have their websites as well as partnering with e-commerce giants which has also given a push to sales,” said Ashish Pethe of Waman Hari Pethe Jewellers, who is also chairman of All India Gem and Jewellery Domestic Council.

A favourite purchase on Dhanteras, the vehicle, has also seen an uptick in sales. In the last five days alone, 1,547 vehicles have been registered in the city ahead of Diwali according to Regional Transport Office (RTO).

“The next two days will see a surge in vehicle registrations in the city, more than Diwali eve. Every year Dussehra and Dhanteras are the days when there is a demand for vehicle registrations,” a senior RTO official said.

Sachin Mahajan, Maharashtra Chairperson, Federation of Automobile Dealers Association (FADA), said, “We already reached pre-pandemic level sales during Ganeshotsav and Dussehra across all verticals of automobile industry. The market is very buoyant this year after the covid induced lockdown is relaxed. The competition in financial markets has led to incentives and discounts which has increased the sale. The faceless registration of new vehicles by the RTO has increased the sales during holidays. We hope to see an increase in sales by at least 25% this festival season provided the availability of vehicles by manufacturers.”

Real estate purchases have also seen an uptick, a trend noticeable since September. “New launches in MMR and sales of residential units have increased in September 2022. A total of 86,428 properties were registered in the month of September alone. Despite rising home loan rates, real estate sales in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) have increased to 14% between Navratri and start of Diwali,” said Keval Valambhia, COO of real estate body CREDAI-MCHI, an apex body for Real Estate Industry Members for Mumbai Metropolitan Region.

He also pointed out that factors like property prices and income levels have remained stable during the last six months. The general upbeat mood of the market and the holiday incentives provided by the developers increased sales which are expected to continue on the upward trend, said Valambhia.

“CREDAI-MCHI strongly feels that the real estate industry is in a structurally bull cycle for realty, however, due to higher interest rates and commodity prices there is a small hiccup to the long-term bull cycle,” he further said.

“Laptops and tablets are in good demand for this upgradation as are LED TVs, smart TVs, sound systems and home entertainment systems. A lot of holiday bonuses are being spent on buying these devices,” said Mitesh Mody, president of All India Electronics Association.