Hobby Buying Declines, Necessity Rules: Textile Expert Dhaval Mehta

In the current economic environment, consumers are focusing on necessity rather than hobby purchases, according to Dhaval Mehta, director of Lado Design Studio and a textile businessman from Surat. Mehta explains that previously, customers would often buy multiple items if they liked something, but now they are restricting their purchases to essential items only.

Commenting on recent unrest in Bangladesh, Mehta suggests that prolonged instability there could benefit India's garment industry. He attributes the decline in hobby buying to the aftermath of demonetization and the shift to 100% white transactions. This shift has also affected women, who used to withdraw cash easily for discretionary spending but now find themselves limited to essential purchases due to net banking and digital payment methods like Google Pay.

Mehta further points out that the implementation of GST significantly increased the prices of goods, including clothing, leading to the closure of many small industries. Despite these challenges, he observes that the garment industry is slowly recovering.