Coimbatore, March 16 Though silk sarees are available everywhere, it has always been associated with Kancheepuram as Coimbatore with Kovai cotton, Madurai with Chungudi, Tirupur with T-shirts and so on.
And it is also not uncommon for people to visit these places and buy their prized collection, though all of these are available across the country.
In fact, one does not have to visit Tirupur to buy T-shirts. The friendly hawker who sells such stuff hops onto the train even during wee-hours armed with loads of colourful T-shirts.
And those passing through this hosiery garment export hub for the first time are invariably tempted to pick a piece or two, usually available at dirt cheap rates.
Vendors outside Tirupur railway station say ‘They come back for more.’
Until recently, these small traders seem to have had no problem sourcing their requirements.
“We have customers from upcountry markets such as Kolkata and Andhra. They come here once in two months, stay for 3-4 days and collect the stuff. But in recent months, they have not been able to source the volumes,’ said a trader.
A cross section of vendors told Business Line that their business, though dull, was not as bad as garment exporters’. ‘Export orders are now few and far. Only when exporters are flush with orders, can we expect inventory pile-up here.
0Following the significant drop in production volumes, the quantities that we have been able to source have also fallen,’ they explained.
To a query on the quality, the vendor said ‘ours is for the domestic market.’
So, you don’t export? ‘Not directly. But there are some Nigerians, who have now settled here. They buy T-shirts from us and forward it to their contacts abroad.’
These traders have in the last fortnight increased the price of T-shirts marginally.
Asked if it was due to the drop in inventory, the trader said ‘the landlord has hiked our rental now that Tirupur is a district. No bargain, please!’
Source : Business Line