KARACHI: Ramadan is a special season for fashion, when designers release their Eid collections. Around this time, events such as Fashion Pakistan Week or Hum Showcase present new festive creations, while countless Eid bazaars bring the latest trends from runways to everyone’s fingertips. This year marks the first time they are all postponed, canceled or banned.
As shows have fallen off the calendar and shops remain shut amid business lockdowns to contain the coronavirus pandemic, Arab News asked several renowned Pakistani designers about the fate of their long-awaited Eid collections.
“We have almost completed our new Eid collection, but due to the pandemic, we had to suspend our plans. Half of our men’s wear was ready, entirely different from our past production in terms of design and fabrics,” said Nauman Arfeen who designed the special suit worn by Prince William during his Pakistan visit in October last year.
Arfeen’s Naushemian brand had to suspend production and promotion — all shots were planned to take place in April, but lockdowns have been in place since late March. “We are putting on our website whatever we have shot before the lockdown. But a lot of our work is frozen, especially the ladies’ wear.”
The closure of Arfeen’s two main outlets in Saddar and Defense areas of Karachi has made his team more active on social media and moved their operations online.
“Online shopping is an option to reach us in this crisis. We have a good customer list and offer home delivery,” he said, but added that although traffic on his site plunged by 40 percent, it was nothing compared with the brand’s normal retail sales during Ramadan.
“The festivity of Ramadan and Eid really adds to your business. People enter to your shop, try your product and if they like it, they will usually buy two instead of one,” Arfeen said.
To make up for lost promotion during fashion shows, he has to focus on various offers to attract online buyers. “We also offer a discount during Ramadan which goes to up to 70 percent off. It is now available online.”
Mona Imran, who is famous for exclusive ladies’ wear, faces similar problems as Arfeen.
“Our team started working on this collection two to three months before Ramadan. Our target was to get them ready from rough sketches to the hangings one month before the holy month to avoid all hustles which usually increase when Eid is near,” Imran said.
But the pandemic suddenly changed all her plans and scenarios.
“Our priority was the safety of our employees, both physical and financial. So we had an online meeting to train our designers and production team on following all safety procedures issued by the government. We have provided our staff with equipment that allows them to work from home.”
To reach her locked down customers, Imran’s marketing team started to operate 24 hours to be on standby on social media if anyone wants to ask about design details, sizes, fabric quality and delivery details.
Imran’s Eid collection this year is going to be less luxurious and more accessible.
“People have gotten hard on their budget these days, so we came up with a strategy to be budget-friendly and play our part making Eid happy and healthy,” she said.
Unlike most designers, Tasneef Sadaf was ready for the season much earlier.
“I usually design two collections for this season every year, for Ramadan and Eid. In this unprecedented and challenging time of lockdown when we are all staying at home, I am extra proud of our team for helping me on these collections months before the pandemic hit us,” she said.
Like others, however, she has focused her sales and promotion on social media platforms.
“We have seen more traffic on our online platforms, where we are making new announcements and launching more designs. We will also be rolling out a new website very soon,” Sadaf said, “Our designs also appear regularly in popular television programs and talk shows. Like every year, our outfits can be seen being worn by hosts of Ramadam transmissions on various Pakistani channels.”
