by Kiran Manral
WHAT’S HAPPENING
- Shopaholics in Mumbai’s Andheri suburb now have more time to shop. No, they’re not spending any less time at work. The local hypermaket, Tata Star Bazaar, is staying open till midnight, giving them the option to relax and shop, and not make a dash for the billing counter (Hindustan Times, 18 January 2011).
- The extended shopping hours have come as a boon to working professionals who commute huge distances and don’t arrive home until 8 p.m. on weekdays. They usually would relegate grocery shopping to weekends. That chore can now be staggered throughout the week.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO BUSINESS
- Weekends are packed at supermarkets with shoppers forced to endure long queues and crowded aisles. Traffic on weekends also makes shopping quite an unpleasant experience.
- Long work hours and time-consuming commutes make weekday shopping iffy, with shoppers unsure whether they will reach the store before it shuts.
RESOURCES
