Sales of wooden furniture decline due to economic crisis

Badrul Ahsan Sales of wooden furniture declined by more than 60 per cent over the last one year mainly due to share market debacle and increasing living cost, industry insiders said. According to the information of Bangladesh Furniture Shilpa Malik Samity (FSMS), entrepreneurs of small and medium-size outlets of non-branded furniture are the main victims of the situation. "The sector has been facing a critical situation round the current year. Dozens of small and medium outlets have been closed within the time due to declining sales," FSMS sources said. On visiting different furniture outlets of the city Saturday the FE correspondent found that sales personnel of the outlets of city's Mirpur and Pantha Path areas were passing idle time due to absence of customers. The furniture manufacturing community said their sufferings have been deteriorating after the recent debacle in the country's stock market as many of the prospective consumers lost almost everything they had in the capital market crash. The community also blamed the increasing living cost for the crisis. "Due to the increasing living cost, people are distressed in buying commodities of their daily necessity, so how they would buy such fashionable and luxurious items," the community people questioned. Leader of FSMS and also managing director of a leading furniture manufacturing company preferring anonymity said, "Most of the entrepreneurs have offered up to 50 per cent discount on selected items and up to 20 per cent in all items of their furniture to bring dynamism to the struggling industry. "We're now trying to attract customers with different catchy offers like general discount, occasional discount, raffle draws and gift items on purchase of furniture with a view to increasing sales," he told the FE. The FSMS leader also said the sales of furniture have dropped about 50 to 60 per cent across the country and there is apprehension that the industry may face closure in the coming days if the situation does not improve. "I had four furniture outlets in Pantha Path area but two of them have been closed due to poor sales during the last six to eight months," Bakul Kumar Mandal, proprietor of Bikrampur Furniture, said. Mondal also expressed his dismay over the situation and said, "I am in doubt how long rest of the businessmen would be able to continue their business after counting such losses." "We actually don't know the future of the sector. We're now in a catastrophic state," he said. Almost all the authorities of country's leading furniture manufacturing companies like Otobi Ltd, Navana Furniture Ltd, Hatil Complex, Partex Furniture etc acknowledged the situation, but did not want to make comments on the issue considering their business secrecy. Some of them said the companies are now making foray in exporting furniture rather than depending on the local market. According to the information of Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), exports of wooden furniture had increased in the last couple of years.