| Last minute Christmas shopping in Dimapur |
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Pfoshuo Ariicho, Morung Express Dimapur | December 22: Time is ticking by, and shoppers are still shopping. With just three days left until Christmas, many shoppers are seen bustling through the Markets on Monday looking for the perfect last-minute gifts for their near and dear ones. I am caught up in the hustle and bustle of Hongkong market and Hazi Park market in Dimapur where the crowd is so large that it is difficult to move without bumping into someone. People are seen packing into the shops in Dimapur, Kohima and Mokokchung in the last few days to make the final stretch of shopping before Christmas. They’re looking for just the right gift, regardless of the cold weather in Kohima and Mokokchung. It’s not cold or hot for shoppers who are driving to get their last minute purchase. The few days before Christmas has always been one of the busiest shopping days of the year in this Christian dominated state of Nagaland. Packed parking lots, traffic jams and the always-smiling shopkeepers greet the shoppers across the state’s district headquarters as retailers try to woo consumers to open their wallets during the final holiday countdown. However, the desperate yet smiling retailers are not content as they are seen trying to clear out racks of merchandise and to squeeze the last rupee from shoppers. In a bid to woo customers, retailers and shopkeepers have also offered steep discounts. “Despite the discount offered, shoppers from other districts, who usually thronged to Dimapur in the past, have stopped due to the ever unpredictable and volatile situation of Dimapur,” rued a shopkeeper. The shopkeepers and retailers of Dimapur also say that shoppers from Mon, Tuensang and other districts bordering Assam go to Jorhat for their purchases. Some shopkeepers also attribute the low business in Dimapur to the weather. A shopkeeper in Hongkong Market says that jackets, sweaters and other woolen clothes are in low demand as the season is still warm, but he hopes that it will get cold enough in January to make up for the ‘loss’ incurred during the festive season. It may be reminded that some shops have slashed prices as low as 50-70 percent on some items, while some offer 25 percent off on all the purchases to woo customers. However, a very interesting business, the ‘Christmas tree business’, is said to be doing very well. Many businesses may have fallen on hard times and may be struggling this holiday season, but the Christmas tree business is not among them. If anything, owners say, business is better this year than ever. |
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