Covid shadow: Shops selling school uniforms hit hard in Chandigarh
Kingsway, a store that had been providing uniforms for various private schools since 1973, had to close their Sector 22 shop this month. Owner
With uncertainty around reopening of schools that were closed in March owing to the pandemic, city stores that had already stocked up on summer uniforms have now become obsolete.
Kingsway, a store that had been providing uniforms for various private schools since 1973, had to close their Sector 22 shop this month. Owner Gurdeep Singh Narula said, “We had taken the shop on rent and had to vacate it this month. The timing of the lockdown was the worst since we had already purchased summer uniforms in bulk, but were unable to sell even a single pair.”
Kingsway’s Phase-7 store in Mohali is still open, however, Narula has had to tap into other markets like innerwear and casual wear. They have been able to sell patkas to go with uniforms, but the rest of the stock remains unsold.
‘BANKS NOT GIVING US LOANS’
Proprietor of Shiksha School Uniforms in Sector 40, Abhishek Aggarwal, said, “We aren’t able to meet even 1% of the sales that we would make otherwise. There is no point in opening the shop daily, so we only open a few days a week. We are venturing into the stationery line, but a capital investment is needed to start a new business and banks are refusing to give us loans when they find out we are in the uniform business.”
“If there is some clarity on when schools will open it will help us plan better,” Aggarwal added.
‘WON’T BE STOCKING WINTER UNIFORMS’
Some of the smaller uniform retailers in Sadar Bazaar in Sector 19 have been the worst hit as sales here are at an all-time low. Proprietor of Puja Garments, Rakesh Mohan, said, “Normally, we would earn ₹30,000 to ₹40,000 in April, but this year the stock lies untouched. It is likely that schools will reopen at the end of summer, so most people won’t buy uniforms. Due to this, we plan not to stock up for winters. Instead of uniforms, we will sell other clothes.”
President of Sector-19 market Narinder Singh said the market that mostly houses garment sellers has recorded no sales, and most sellers, like Mohan, will not stock uniforms till next year.