Mumbai retail owners fear the complete closure of their stores after the new COVID rules in Maharashtra were announced by the government

Amid spur in COVID-19 cases in Mumbai, the government has ordered for the closure of all non-essential shops in the city till April 30, along with announcing new COVID rules in Maharashtra. However, the rules do not seem to be in the favour of the retail industry making them raise their concerns.

It was not more than six months since the retail industry in Mumbai had started working on a regular pace that the new COVID rules in Maharashtra hit them again. After the city reported a tremendous increase in the Coronavirus cases, the state government announced the closure of non-essential retail shops in Mumbai from April 5 followed by a weekend lockdown under 'Break The Chain' guidelines. The decision, though a necessary step to tackle the situation, is now worrying the retail shop owners as they have been left without any support from the legislative bodies.

Shilpa Bhatia, who runs The Clothing Rental at Bandra and Andheri, says that the new lockdown has kicked them on their knees again. "We had to let go of the majority of our staff last time. Only recently, we had started adding people back on the team and the rules are imposed again," Ms. Bhatia says.

Maharashtra is currently under a night curfew from 8 pm to 7 pm. The government has also imposed weekend lockdown in the state from Friday night to Monday morning.

Plight of homegrown businesses

Talking about the hazards of the lockdown-like situation in the retail industry, Mallika Thakker, the owner of Bliss Store in Vile Parle says that the situation is scary. "Small businesses take years to make a mark and find a niche in the market. They also make a lot of effort in getting noticed as their marketing budgets are low," she says. "With highly reduced buying during this pandemic, the businesses have already lost out on the brand visibility," she says.

After being closed for half a year in 2020, Mallika Thakker had opened an online store for her brand. However, she believes that new norms would, once again, affect the retail industry badly.

"Lesser sales have resulted in back stock, lesser new collections, and overall lesser liquidity. Expenses like rent, salaries and utilities have stayed the same. This has resulted in a lot of smaller brand stores shutting down. A lot of businesses have moved to the already saturated online space, which is a whole new ballgame," Ms. Thakker adds.

To deal with the current situation, the Anupam Stationery Superstore, a retail chain in Mumbai has started home deliveries of the products. However, not having an e-commerce website is another hindrance coming their way in the operations.

"We can not deny the fact that imposing lockdown was a necessary step. Similarly, we can also not undermine how badly it will affect small and medium scale retailers. A majority of retail businesses will come to a complete halt," Rushabh Gala, the owner of the store says.

He also says that the COVID guidelines could have been a bit friendlier to non-essential shopkeepers. "The government could allow us to work, at least, for alternate days of the week. Opening the stores for limited hours of the day was also one option," Mr. Gala adds.

Industry demands

On a similar line, Shilpa Bhatia says that several options can be the alternative to the complete closure. "In view of the situation, reducing employees and clients can be an essential step," she says.

The Clothing Rental, owned by Shilpa Bhatia, is now serving the consumers through the online platform. However, Ms. Bhatia believes that not allowing walk-in service in the stores and meeting the clients by appointments can still be a good option to carry out retail operations.

Since the non-essential physical stores in Mumbai are completely shut, the owners also demand exemptions. "It is essential to receive some sort of tax benefits or percentage reductions in rent and utilities. It can help small brands save on working capital that can be used to fuel the business and push it along towards recovery," Mallika Thakker says.

On April 6, retail owners in Borivali associated with Borivali East Vyapari Association had staged a protest. The shopkeepers were seen holding posters to voice against the new curbs.

Rushabh Gala, while hoping that the pandemic ends soon, also says that the retail industry is unhappy with the decision on lockdown. "We are ready to oppose in any way if the guidelines are not relaxed or refreshed," he said.

Even if the curbs on the retail industry is likely to be removed on April 30, the retailers are wishing for support from the government to survive in the market.

Also Read: New COVID-19 precautionary guidelines by the Maharashtra government disrupt the F&B industry; Business Leaders believe the move to be a slow death for them!

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