DITF draws huge crowd on weekend

Dhaka International Trade Fair (DITF) 2019 attracted a large number of visitors on Friday, the second weekly holiday since the month-long event began on January 9.
Visitors from various areas of the capital city and other parts of the country started flocking to the fair in the city's Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area after it opened at 10.00 am.
Talking to the FE correspondent, most of the traders expressed satisfaction with the number of visitors showing interest in their products alongside the rising volume of sales.
However, some of them said sales volume was still below their desired level. But it would rise in the coming days, as many customers were still making their decisions before the final purchase of products.
"We are getting positive response from the customers so far," said Shihabur Rahman, a representative of Euroasia Mattress pavilion in the fair.
"DITF is a great opportunity for us to exhibit our products, including mattress, pillow, cushion and comforters, which are still uncommon to many people. Many of them visit the fair to explore new household items."
A sales person at the pavilion said the price of their fiber-made mattresses starts from around Tk 10,000 and varies depending on size and quality.
Their microfiber-made pillows are sold for Tk 1,000 each, she added.
There are over 600 stalls of various categories, including pavilion, mini pavilion and premiere stall, in the 24th edition of DITF.
Ministry of Commerce and Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) of Bangladesh have organised the fair.
According to EPB, a total of 52 organisations from 22 countries, including United States, United Kingdom, India, Iran, Pakistan, Australia, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan, are participating in the expo.
Foreign pavilions and stalls were found attracting a good number of visitors by offering some unique products are not frequently available in domestic market.
Mizanur Rahman, a visitor hailing from Cumilla, said: "I have fascination for Iranian spices and carpets, which are available only at DITF every year."
He also said some unique merchandise, like -- handicrafts, showpieces, consumer goods, dresses and other household items, were also available at the Iranian, Indian, Pakistani and Thai stalls in the fair.
"But unfortunately some traders sell local products in the name of foreign ones that can tarnish the image of such an international event."
The DITF organisers should pay attention to such a kind of fraud in the fair, he also said.
However, Mr Rahman praised overall arrangement of the fair, especially its online ticketing system, launched for the first time this year, in addition to traditional ticket selling system.
"I entered the expo venue without any hassle, thanks to the online ticketing system," he added.
Hundreds of visitors were seen waiting in front of the ticket counters and entrance on Friday, while online ticket purchasers were entering the fair venue through a separate lane.
Online ticket and other information services are available at www.e-ditf.com. A Bangladeshi startup company - Valleycon Digital - has developed the system.
When contacted, its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Imran Mahmud Shamim said most of the users so far expressed their satisfaction with the virtual ticketing system.
"There is a need for promoting the service to attract more users. There is no alternative to going online to help minimise visitors' hassle, especially on holidays," he added.

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