Retail sales in January 2022 suffered from restrictions imposed by states in an attempt to curb the third wave of the pandemic, according to the 24th edition of the Retail Business Survey by the Retailers Association of India (RAI).
The survey found that sales in January 2022 were at 91% of pre-pandemic levels.
Decrease of sales
While some states have allowed retail outlets to operate with fewer restrictions in response to falling hospitalization numbers, Delhi and Haryana have maintained heavy restrictions. Nonetheless, the restrictions resulted in negative sales sending categories such as beauty, wellness and personal care (-24%), furniture and furnishings (-12%), clothing and apparel ( -7%) and shoes (-4%). cent) in the red compared to pre-pandemic levels (January 2019), despite this being a wedding season.
Other categories that were on a steady growth trajectory, such as CDIT, also experienced a decline in sales growth rate.
Kumar Rajagopalan, CEO of the Retailers Association of India (RAI), said: “In response to the steady decline in Covid-19 cases and hospitalization rates across the country, most states have allowed retail outlets to detail to be open until late hours so that there is no crowding at any time. The only real concern is Delhi and Haryana who still do not allow shops to open until late, which is creating a big impact on business without helping to solve the overcrowding problem. The restrictions remain in place despite assurances from the authorities that they will be lifted. We hope that Delhi and Haryana will take inspiration from states such as Maharashtra and allow all retail formats to be open till late and in line with practices across the country to speed up the return to normal.
Retail businesses in all regions reported declines with sales in South India at 98% of pre-pandemic levels (January 2019), North India at 92%, India at 89% and East India at 87% pre-pandemic levels (January 2019).
Published on
February 15, 2022
