Nothing fancy, just the basics: In protest season, shopping habit changes in malls

KOLKATA: On Friday evening, Sreemoye and Ranjan Sen went to South City mall to buy clothes for their parents and daughter. They had been meaning to do it for three weeks, but had postponed it every weekend until they realised it didn't make sense to wait any more. But, unlike other years, when it becomes a fun day out with the family and ushers in the puja mood, they came alone, just bought whatever they needed to buy, and left for home.
The Sens' behaviour reflects the mood of shoppers stepping into malls across the city.With just three weeks to go for Bengal's biggest festival, apparel retailers are doing business but cinemas and restaurants are not.
After low footfall in the past month, usually the busiest time in other years, customer count increased this week, with retailers and mall operators expecting a good weekend turnout. But, with the general mood in the city that of unease because of the impasse between junior doctors and govt, people are shying away from entertainment.
Homemaker Mahesweta Sil, too, purchased new clothes for her children. "It was a purchase like every year. But the joy and enthusiasm was missing," she said.
Mall operators in the city said the average time spent by customers in the mall had almost halved, compared to the corresponding period last year. "With people not interested in watching movies or eating out, they are spending a lot less time than they usually do," said Ramesh Pandey, whole-time director at Ambuja Neotia, which operates City Centre 1 (Salt Lake) and City Centre 2 (New Town).
Though the two malls have not been affected by protests, as it is away from popular rally spots, food and beverage sales are down 25%, while cinema is down 50%. In the 17 shows at one of the malls on Friday, there were only 314 viewers.
At Quest mall in Park Circus, the turnout has been lukewarm, but mall vice-president Sanjeev Mehra expects the footfall to rise in the run-up to Mahalaya. "People are not in a mood to celebrate. They are doing the essential purchase. The mood could change if the doctors' stir ends. We are hoping it does," he said.
South City mall vice-president Manmohan Bagree said customers were being cautious. "I get a sense that people don't want to be seen as having fun or indulging in leisure activities. It is almost like the period before puja in 2021, when people were walking in, buying just the stuff they needed and leaving without hanging out at the mall," he said.
At Kasba's Acropolis mall, too, footfall and sales are lower, compared to last year. "The overall footfall in the mall is better than before but it is still 30% lower than last year, whereas sales is 15% lower than last year," said mall manager Subhadip Basu. "We are witnessing a significant surge in serious apparel shopping. We are expecting this to go up next week as schools' half-yearly examinations get over."