Lunda Bazar hikes prices due to inflation, customers in dire straits

Islamabad: With the sharp dip in mercury, the urgency to buy warm clothes rises. Hence the Lunda Bazaar (second-hand market), sees an influx of clients, hurrying to buy warm clothes at an affordable rate. Sadly, even the Lunda Bazaar is not exempt from the price hike.

Once considered the domain of the poor and the lower middle class has now turned into a hub of the middle and upper-middle-class due, to the rise in inflation. The exponential increase in inflation and price-hike of almost all commodities has added to the cost of living, forcing people from the middle and upper middle class, to turn to these markets, a shopkeeper selling secondhand jackets and sweaters at Jamia Masjid Road told Bol News.

In Rawalpindi Cantonment, the main concentration of secondhand clothes shops is on Railway Road and some streets near Messy Gate. But on Sundays stalls of secondhand clothes are established all around the main Sadar market offering all kinds of winter wear and accessories including gloves, woollen caps, mufflers, pullovers, sweatshirts and jackets.

While in the city, where the prices of these woollies are comparatively low, as compared to the Sadar market, such clothing is mainly available on Jamia Masjid Road, Imambara Road, Trunk Bazar and Raja Bazar.

Mohammad Nazir, purchasing winter clothing for his children, at Imambara Road complained about the sharp increase in the prices of these secondhand clothes. “The jacket I had purchased for Rs 500 last year is now available at Rs 1,500, and so are the prices of other items,” he said. “I purchased sweaters and jackets for my three kids from here last year. But now it seems difficult to purchase all these things in one go and have to defer some of these items for next month due to abnormal increases in the prices,” he added.

On the other hand, the shopkeepers said that due to the imposition of customs duty and general sales tax on secondhand clothes, they are getting these goods from wholesalers at inflated rates so they have to pass on this increase to the customers.

The middle and upper middle class have better purchasing power than the poor who solely depend on these markets for their clothing needs.

A shopkeeper at Jamia Masjid Road was happy over the hike in sales as compared to the previous year and hoped that the rush in the market will further increase after another winter rain.

However, some of the shopkeepers in Lunda Bazar at Railway Road said that though the business of secondhand clothes witnessed an increase, due to the imposition of taxes and customs duty on the import of these items, their profit margin has shrunk.

Gul Mohammad Khan, the wholesale dealer at Lunda Bazar, said that the government has imposed a 20 per cent Customs duty on the import of secondhand clothing, besides a 17 per cent general sales tax.

Due to the imposition of these taxes and duties, a 100-kilogramme bale of secondhand clothes available for Rs 12,000 previously, has witnessed a five to six thousand rupees of increase and now it is available for Rs 17,000 plus.

Another shopkeeper in Raja Bazar said that the wholesalers who used to sell the bale of 100 kilogrammes at the rate of Rs 7 to 8 per kilogramme are now charging Rs 17 to 18 per kilogramme for the same. So the increase in the rates of secondhand clothes is obvious. According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, this year, people have imported 1.86 lakh tonnes of secondhand clothes in the first two months of fiscal 2022-23, which is almost 283 per cent high as compared to the same period last year.

An employee of some federal government department looking for a long coat at Coat Gali in Raja Bazar said that the shopkeepers are demanding Rs 2500 to Rs 3000 for a long coat now. The same was available for Rs 1000 to Rs 1500 last year depending on the quality.

He rejected the argument that this increase was due to the imposition of taxes on the import of secondhand clothes, clarifying that as there is no price-checking mechanism in the country, the shopkeepers are selling their products at the prices of their choice.

Waqar Satti, selling coats and trousers in Coat Gali Raja Bazar, said that for the past couple of years, youth from the affluent class visit the Lunda Bazar in search of branded items. They want quality branded staff and do not bargain much on prices.

While the majority of their customers are those who are compelled to buy stuff from Lunda Bazar because they cannot afford to purchase costly new stuff. “You can get a good quality branded tweed coat for around Rs 1500 while a far less in quality new coat in the local market is available on Rs 9 to 10 thousand.”

Although the prices of secondhand clothes have witnessed a sharp increase even then these are far cheaper than the new ones available in the market. They still meet the needs of diverse segments of society which go there for shopping; some look for branded clothes while some meet their basic needs.