Leading shopping portals like Muncha.com, Thamel.com, Estorenepal.com, Giftmandu.com and Neftfornepal.com, among others, reported rise in business during the Dashain festival.[break]
These companies had introduced special products like goats, hen, duck, sweets and chocolates, cakes with special Dashain messages, beverages, clothes, shoes, mobiles, electronics, fruits, dry fruits, kites and threads among others, during Dashain. Some of the portals had also introduced ´online pooja´ to facilitate people living abroad.
“Dashain is the most profitable time for us, as people residing abroad send gifts to their friends and families,” said Niranjan Shrestha, online shopping executive at Muncha.com. “Besides orders from Nepalis living abroad, we also received significant local orders this Dashain.”
Shrestha told Republica that Muncha.com received around 600 orders in a week period during Dashain - a rise of 25 to 30 percent compared to last Dashain.
Muncha.com mostly received orders for goat, hen, duck, electronic items, beverages and online puja.
Bipin Khatri, director of estorenepal.com, also said online business increased during Dashain. “We received orders from countries like US, UK, Australia, UAE, Malaysia and Qatar where number of Nepalis is high,” added Khatri.
Compared to ordinary days, estorenepal.com reported three times rise in orders during Dashain.
“People living abroad send special gifts to their family during Dashain so that they can contribute to the family celebration,” Suresh Tuladhar, managing director of netfornepal.com, said. “It is natural for the business to rise during Dashain.” He said transactions at his company increased by around 30 to 40 percent during Dashain compared to normal times.
Tuladhar said local demand also increased during Dashain due to factors like traffic jams, crowded bazaars, and lack of time for shopping, among others.
People involved in the trade said price of goods at online stores is same as that of market. These companies charge delivery charge depending on weight of goods and distance.
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