Why are we Eid shopping already?!
Just when we thought we were done with summer shopping, out came the ads again, pitching an enticing new key word: Eid!
Eid's come early, if you'd believe designer ads - Photo courtesy Sana Safinaz's official Facebook page
And now, just when you thought you were done with your shopping, out came the advertisements again, pitching an all-new key word to entice you: ‘Eid’!
Eid, already?!
But Eid is more than a month away. The fasting month of Ramadan is yet to begin and you’re still happily gorging on three meals a day (albeit not too much because you want to continue fitting into that summer wardrobe you’ve amassed so diligently). Nevertheless, Eid exhibits and collections are quite the ‘it’ things right now, drawing in crowds and a healthy bit of shoving and pushing all the way to the sales till.
Khaadi launched its first collection in chiffon for this Eid
Pieces from Sana Safinaz's Eid collection are already 'sold out'
“The fabric adds in a luxe element,” explains Safinaz, “so that the clothes can be worn in the evening, on Eid, at a big dinner or even at events leading to a wedding.”
It’s a clever marketing decision. Lawn designs, even the most embellished ones, are now nothing new to the market. Eid collections in more formal fabric, meanwhile, manage to immediately catch women’s attention – especially since they are also ideal for the wedding season that immediately follows Eid.
Bought for Eid, treasured all year round - Maria B's M-Broidered are hot-sellers
There are also festive lines that have just been launched by textile bigshots Al-Karam and Gul Ahmed, high-street maverick Sapphire and many more are sure to follow. Oh well, the more the merrier.
Shopping … on a full stomach
But would designers – and textile mills - benefit more were they to release collections a bit later, cashing in on the pre-Eid hype, when the nation at large fasts all day and then treats itself with shopping splurges?
Apparently, the pre-Eid hype has already begun.
Seen here at their private showing of their Eid collection, Farah Talib Aziz's public exhibition was a knockout the next day
And therefore, even though the festival is still more than a month away, it’s Eid shopping season. If you’re the red-blooded shopaholic woman that you claim to be, you’ve probably already stocked on some of those Eid designs