Little India retailers feeling the pinch in run-up to Deepavali

Chief executive C. Sankaranathan at the Appollo Sellappas department store in Little India. Sales at the store have been 30 per cent lower in the past two months compared with the same period last year, as customers prefer to remit money earned here
Chief executive C. Sankaranathan at the Appollo Sellappas department store in Little India. Sales at the store have been 30 per cent lower in the past two months compared with the same period last year, as customers prefer to remit money earned here to India, to take advantage of the falling rupee. ST PHOTO: GAVIN FOO
Aw Cheng Wei
China Correspondent
Updated
Oct 18, 2018, 09:49 AM
Published
Oct 18, 2018, 05:00 AM
New: Gift this subscriber-only story to your friends and family

Cash registers in Little India should be ringing non-stop at this time of the year as Deepavali is approaching, but the plunging Indian currency is making customers think twice.

Department store Appollo Sellappas in Dunlop Street is usually busiest during this period, but it is feeling the pinch in the run-up to the festival on Nov 6.

Already a subscriber? 

Read the full story and more at $9.90/month

Get exclusive reports and insights with more than 500 subscriber-only articles every month

ST One Digital

 $9.90/month

No contract

ST app access on 1 mobile device

Subscribe now

Unlock these benefits

  • All subscriber-only content on ST app and straitstimes.com

  • Easy access any time via ST app on 1 mobile device

  • E-paper with 2-week archive so you won't miss out on content that matters to you

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on October 18, 2018, with the headline Little India retailers feeling the pinch in run-up to Deepavali. Subscribe

Available for
iPhones and iPads
Available in
Google Play

MCI (P) 066/10/2023. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No. 202120748H. Copyright © 2024 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.

Back to the top