BIHAR CHANGING WITH GREAT BRAND POWER

New hotspot for shopaholics in capital

AAROHI KESHAV

A showroom along Kankerbagh main road in Patna. Picture by Aarohi Keshav Patna, March 21: Shopaholics in the state capital have a new hub to pamper themselves — big showrooms have come up at the populated Kankerbagh area. Sushma Kumari, a resident of the area, said: “Shopping here is hassle free. Not only is it near my house, everything is available here now. Why go anywhere else when I can get it all at my doorstep?” Be it shoes, clothes, household utility, children’s wear, electronics — you name it, you have it. Even if you don’t, it is sure to come up soon. Showrooms of many branded products have raised shutters in this upscale area. Residents of the area, too, prefer to visit the fancy shops at their doorsteps rather than brave traffic to go to upscale areas like Boring Road, Frazer Road and Patliputra. “For the past year, this area has emerged as a hotspot for shoppers,” said Sanjay Kumar, owner of two showrooms in the area. He added: “The sales go up continuously. This area has a lot of potential buyers.” Everyday, shops in the area earn between Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000. In fact, the showroom of a famous clothesline in the area has been the highest earner in east India, he added. “Most showrooms have come up in this area in recent times. What has prompted this is the fact that this area is not yet congested,” said Sanjay. He also said consumers find it easy to find parking space here, unlike other areas where it is a headache. Suchita Sinha, a customer at a showroom for children’s attire, said: “We have been coming here more than any other place in recent times. We get everything here for the same price. “The collection here is the same as that in other showrooms in upscale areas of Patna,” said Sinha. “We had limited options earlier. But why should we travel to other places for the same stuff,” she said. Ajay Singh, the owner of two showrooms of children’s wear, said he was, at first, sceptical about opening a showroom in Kankerbagh. “We thought places like Boring Road catered more to consumers. But we were wrong. The sales have increased manifold in the past six months,” he said. Shoppers, obviously, agree with him. “Earlier, shopping meant the wastage of an entire day for me. We had to travel for hours to other places. Also there was a problem for parking vehicles,” said Ranjan Yadav, a resident of the area. He added: “The shops are bigger and better here. We often get the latest stuff here that is not available in other places in the city. This is a paradise for shopaholics.”