July 7, 2014: This year monsoon is shorter and so is the monsoon discount. Retailers are limiting the discount period to July only, planning to start with new fashion designs and clothing lines from August onwards. Usually monsoon discounts last longer – 3 months and more. However the rebound of economy and buoyancy of consumers are tempting retailers to cut short the monsoon discount period.
Most of the leading retailers like Shoppers Stop and Runwal as well as large fashion brands like Zara, Mango, Marks and Spencer, Pantaloon and Kenneth Cole are offering up to 50% discounts to attract consumers for monsoon sales. This year footfall has been quite high, which seems to have given confidence to retailers to cut short the discount period. They believe that they will be able to clear off old merchandise in a months time as they are expecting the footfall to outlets to increase by 40 to 50% in the coming 2 weeks. They hope to kick start the sales of new designs and inventory from August. The new sales cycle could extend up to October, till the time of Diwali.
In the time of economic distress, when purchasing power of consumers is less, the new fashion sales usually last for 3 months, but this year given the economic buoyancy, retailers believe that this sales cycle can last longer for more than 5 months and they hope to gain a significant share of customer wallet. This reflects the direct correlation between the general mood of the consumer and the duration of discount period.
