Republic day sales significance in Indian Apparel Sector

10 January 2023, Mumbai

There are fewer opportunities to dress up and go out due to the increased number of Covid instances. Most e-commerce sites and even firms that have advertised Republic Day deals and sales claim that Delhiites are buying hysterically but refraining from purchasing clothes for parties.

Adwaita Nayar, CEO and founding member of Nykaa Fashion, commented on their current Republic Day sale and how the pandemic affected demand for loungewear, saying that "evolving hybrid work models played an important role in fueling the demand for simpler pieces that allow for a seamless transition into multi-tasking avatars, whether working from home, going out to meet friends, or just working out."

The craze for republic day

For Republic Day, we have a lot of promotions running, and people are ordering more casual clothing than party or festive attire. Delhi has historically been a strong market for heavy ethnic dress, but that is also not happening at the moment, according to Ruchika Kamboj of online clothing retailer AshRoop Fashion Store. Our sales for casual wear are 55% higher than those for party wear.

People don't want to spend a lot on party apparel right now. Therefore, we are being pushed to provide more significant discounts. To pair these party dresses with other items, we are creating combinations. Tracksuits and other casual clothing go off the shelves rapidly and need to be restocked, even if there isn't a significant discount on them.

All major e-commerce sites, including Amazon India, Flipkart, and Shopclues, are back with their online sales, featuring a wide range of offers and steep discounts on accessories, home appliances, fashion and lifestyle items, mobile phones, and more.

The Republic Day Sale, which began on January 21 and ends on January 23, is held by Flipkart and has fantastic savings on items including smartphones, laptops, IoT gadgets, and more. The sale is concurrent with the competing Amazon Great Indian Sale, which started on January 21 as well but will end one day later on January 24. This holiday season, more buyers will be checking in to take advantage of the online-only discounts as e-commerce becomes many's preferred buying method.

Major Industry executive’s views

According to industry executives, retailers and brands of consumer electronics will dispose of unsold inventory after this month's price increase of 6-20% on devices slowed the rise of sales. Although the holiday season saw strong sales, the market for FMCG and electronics began to decline in December.

Since the Covid-19 outbreak, consumers should expect discounts on televisions and appliances for the first time, according to Vijay Babu, vice president of LG India, the largest appliance manufacturer in the nation. Although there has been a significant price increase and shops bought a lot of inventory in December anticipating it, Babu claimed that the reduction would be more significant because they will be selling the products for less than the previous price to clear out stock.

As things have started to return to normal, the supply chain has been streamlined and is even more lean and efficient than before, according to Albinder Dhindsa, CEO and co-founder of online grocer Grofers.

The company is now wholly equipped and prepared to match all client expectations regarding discounts and offers, according to Kishore Biyani, founder of Future Group, which invented the idea of Republic Day sale events about 15 years ago.

At first, he added, "we have initiated a pre-event booking discount that will be beyond discounts at the stores. Avneet Singh Marwah, the CEO of SPPL, which sells Thomson and Kodak televisions online, said that this year's average discount will be 10% as opposed to 5-7% from the previous year. Demand has decreased since January as a result of the 15-20% price increase, he claimed.

According to Bizom, a sales automation company that deals with 7.5 million retail establishments, October and November witnessed sales growth of 16% and 23%, respectively, in the fast-moving consumer goods industry. Still, December demand decreased dramatically and saw a decline of 3.9%.

According to Avenue Supermarts, the third quarter saw a 10% increase in revenues, although December sales at DMart stores older than two years accounted for 96% of those from the same period the year prior. Neville Noronha, general director of Avenue Supermarts, stated last week that specific out-of-home usages categories like clothing, washing, footwear, travel, and others took longer to recover.

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