Consumer firms spot early signs of bright festive sales

livemint.com:

Bajaj Electricals, which sells fans, home appliances, lighting, and cookware under the Morphy Richards and Nirlep brands. Last year, demand had been “weak", Poddar said. “November 2022 onwards demand had fallen.

So I would say there is clearly a 80-90% chance of better festive season." Rising inflation at the beginning of the year had affected demand for many discretionary products. In fact, apparel retailers advanced the end-of-season sales to tide over the crisis, Mint reported in June. Unseasonal rains in some parts of the country also dented demand for cooling appliances, beverages and ice-creams.

According to designer Masaba Gupta the early part of the year was “very challenging" for the apparel industry. High inflation in general forced consumers to reconsider their spending on discretionary items. “The first quarter of this year was very challenging for apparel industry.

We’re hoping that the festive season will change that. For example, during Rakhi, we saw signs of a revival in in-store shopping in a big way. Last year was one of our best years.

We can say that we will hit numbers earlier this year, but there’s market reality that we have to understand." Gupta sells affordable luxury clothing and beauty products. With signs of demand revival, retailers are pinning hopes of a robust festive season, beginning late August up to November. This period traditionally sees robust sales across categories, including large appliances, clothing, jewellery and gifting items.