For businessmen, retailers and traders at Thyagaraya Nagar, the shopping hub of Chennai, Aadi season this year was tough — most big brands and retail names could only make 30%-40% sales, while the others managed to sell just 15%-20%.
Those running businesses here for decades said if the number of COVID-19 cases drops, sales may improve in October, ahead of Deepavali. Or else, they will have to wait until 2021.
Sales were subdued at Pothys, which first mastered the art of this particular sale way back in the 1990s. It first started the sale as Aadi Kazhivu in Tirunelveli, with the objective of disposing of excess, unsold and slow-moving stock. Slowly, other retailers in the area followed suit, and the phenomenon of Aadi sale thus took birth in T. Nagar, the retail capital of the State.
“Only essential shopping happened this season, especially for marriages. Consumers who walked in shopped for necessities, while a few bought for sentimental purpose,” said Ramesh Pothy, managing director of the shop. Compared to last year, Pothys sold only 30% this year, and is hopeful that businesses will pick by Deepavali. “Full recovery will happen only next year,” Mr. Pothy said.
P.A. Ravindran, general manager, Chennai Silks, said in general, business was not good in Chennai, but in the districts, it was otherwise. “Due to travel restrictions, people who normally come to Chennai for Aadi shopping went to shops in their own districts,” he said, adding that people’s spending capacity had come down.
This year, several shops in T. Nagar, including Chennai Silks, Pothys and Sundari Silks, expected that Aadi sale would happen online. But online shopping was not successful. For Mr. Pothy, online was a different experience this year.
“Only our regular customers purchased online. I would say roughly 2% of sales happened online for us,” Mr. Pothy said. “We also tried online sales, but it wasn’t that successful. People still want to touch and feel before buying a product,” Mr. Ravindran said.
The traditional way
R. Manmohan Ram, managing partner of Sundari Silks, had a different story. “We have maintained our Aadi sale, mainly on our website, and it has done well,” he said.
“After reopening during the second lockdown, the footfall has been higher, and customers are willing to come in person. Customers are shopping with a set goal, depending on their needs,” he added. Sundari Silks even experimented with the traditional format, where a sales person was sent to the customers’ [on request] houses, with a variety of options to choose from. “We have delivered to customers staying in hotels, who are not able to come out to shop,” Mr. Ram said.
Businessmen who operate on Ranganathan Street said sales were down by 70%-80%, as their customers comprised those who relied on public transport for commuting. Sundar. J, managing director of Jeyachandran Textiles, said they did not put out any Aadi announcements this year.
“Over 90% of our clientele are those who come through public transport. With no transportation, business was down this Aadi,” he said. Another big retailer here, who has multiple branches in T. Nagar, said employees in various sectors did not turn up as they were working from home. This was a big dampener for retailers. “The government has clearly instructed that we should close shops by 7 p.m. and those working from home also end their day by 6.30 p.m to 7 p.m. So it wasn’t possible for them to come out for shopping. The only day they get is Sunday, when again a total lockdown is in place,” he added.
Traders are hopeful that the situation will improve by October. Though there is no concrete data on overall sales in the hub during Aadi, by some estimates, shops in the hub normally (organised and unorganised) hit revenues of over ₹2,500 crore during the season, said traders.
