Patna: The annual Lhasa Market, organized by the Tibetan Refugee Association near Patna High Court, is facing a decline in customer turnout this year, resulting in a sales drop of up to 70%, as reported by several stall owners offering a variety of winter clothes.
Stall owners attribute the decrease in demand to the growing number of stores, especially malls, offering winter wear across the city. Vendors, hailing from various regions like Uttarakhand, Darjeeling, the northeast, and southern parts of the country, expressed concerns about recovering their investments this year. They procure their stock from Delhi and Ludhiana.
Tsultrim, a member of the Tibetan Refugee Association, highlighted another challenge, stating, “Local markets like Palika Bazar and Bombay market opened near the entrance gate of the high court. The main entrance has the board of Lhasa Market, but we have been given the back space for stalls. Customers get confused and flock to these markets run by local vendors near the entrance, believing their stalls are part of Lhasa Market, which is authentic and run by the association since 1974.”
However, Manshi Sharma, a visitor to Lhasa Market, commented on the high prices of clothes and the fixed pricing policy. She mentioned that customers tend to prefer bargaining and questioned the rationale of paying higher prices for local products when branded items are available at similar rates in city malls and multi-brand outlets.
This year, 105 stalls have been set up in the market, which runs from September to January annually.
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