The country’s fashion and footwear retailers have expressed disappointment over weak Eid-ul-Azha sales, citing changing consumer behaviour and persistent inflationary pressure as key reasons behind the decline in demand.

Retailers said the close timing of Eid-ul-Fitr, Pahela Baishakh and Eid-ul-Azha this year also reduced consumers’ interest in buying clothes and footwear for Eid-ul-Azha.

According to the Fashion Entrepreneurs Association of Bangladesh (FEAB), retailers lost nearly 60 percent of their expected sales during the season.

Eid-ul-Azha, the second-largest religious festival in Muslim-majority Bangladesh, is traditionally considered a peak shopping period during the 15 days leading up to the festival, retailers said.

Azharul Hoque Azad, managing director of Sadakalo, said this year’s Eid-ul-Azha sales were the worst in the past decade, with businesses witnessing a sharp fall in consumer spending.

He attributed the poor sales mainly to continued economic hardship and inflation, which have weakened people’s purchasing power. He also said the decision to close markets at 10:00pm affected shopping habits and reduced customer turnout during peak evening hours.

According to Azad, sales this season were only around 40 percent of what retailers would normally expect during a typical Eid-ul-Azha period.

Inflation climbed above 9 percent again in April, reversing the easing trend seen in March and signalling renewed pressure from fuel price hikes and higher import costs linked to the Middle East conflict.

Point-to-point inflation stood at 9.04 percent in April, up from 8.71 percent in March, according to data from the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.

The increase was driven by both food and non-food items. Non-food inflation rose more sharply to 9.57 percent in April from 9.09 percent a month earlier, indicating sustained increases in the costs of fuel, transport and other services.

Soumik Das, chief executive officer of Rang Bangladesh, said sales this year were disappointing, with businesses only managing to match last year’s weak figures.

He said retailers had expected stronger sales following the change in government and the beginning of what many hoped would be a better economic period, but those expectations were not realised.

According to him, the overall market situation remained sluggish, leaving many entrepreneurs frustrated as expectations for Eid-ul-Azha sales had been high while actual consumer spending stayed low.

He added that middle- and lower-middle-income consumers may have prioritised spending on sacrificial animals or become more cautious about discretionary expenses.

Retailers usually face intense pressure during Eid shopping seasons and often require additional temporary workers and support staff to manage crowds.

This year, however, retailers said there was no such pressure.

Rang Bangladesh did not hire additional temporary staff, and office employees were not required to assist at outlets during weekends as customer turnout remained close to regular off-season levels, Soumik added.

Khalid Mahmood Khan, co-founder of Kay Kraft, said the share of Eid-ul-Azha sales in overall annual business has declined in recent years, with recent growth driven largely by repeated promotional campaigns.

According to him, such “price offers” helped attract customers and increase product movement, but significantly reduced profit margins for businesses.

Khalid said this year’s Eid-ul-Azha recorded higher product sales compared to the past few years, but mostly at lower prices.

In many cases, businesses were forced to sell products with little or no profits simply to maintain market activity and sustain customer buying habits, he added.

A senior official of a leading footwear company said extreme heat and heavy rainfall in recent weeks significantly disrupted customer movement and reduced footfall at retail outlets.

The official said consumer buying patterns were also shifting, with demand falling particularly for higher-priced products.

Inflation has weakened purchasing power across both premium and lower-priced market segments, he added.

Azharul Hoque Azad, also president of FEAB, said retail businesses are heavily influenced by political and social conditions, and recent incidents of crime, accidents and killings have negatively affected public sentiment and consumer confidence.