Chennai: If you are eagerly waiting for your New Year gifts such as diaries, calendars or stationery, you will be disappointed. Both November and December have been disastrous for traders, corporate houses in Chennai and Kancheepuram, thus forcing them to refrain booking wholesale orders.
Stationery, plywood, fireworks, hardware, leather, real estate, dairy and marine export are the worst hit sectors, due to heavy downpour while farmers can recoup due to availability of excess water.
The other sectors will take at least another six months to get profits, say market insiders at Parry’s and Broadway, Chennai’s commercial hub.
This Christmas and New Year is grim. Already Deepavali sale was a dampener due to November deluge, wholesale traders rued. “Calendar business has been adversely affected as most of the traders who print calendars have incurred heavy losses due to floods. Cardboard production and processing had also been hit due to rain and moist conditions, said a wholesale trader, R. Muragadoss, partner, S. M. Stores. “Our sales this December has been affected by 50 per cent, but customers are requesting us to print calendars by the first week of January, so that they can distribute them by next month.
Similarly, bookings for new year diaries had also plummeted this season by 40 per cent. Most of the corporates are now into relief work or rebuilding their damaged infrastructure, staffers with Novelty Stationery at Parry’s said.
With no business orders due to rains, several godowns are lying vacant. The situation will improve only after Pongal, said A. Moorthy, realty consultant. Godowns which were in high demand despite rentals ranging above Rs 1 lakh, are now lying vacant for the past two months at Sowcarpet, Elephant Gate, Choolai and Vepery, he said.
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