The apparel industry has seen a gradual slowdown in sales due to a lack of discretionary spending by consumers. This decline has been present for the past few months, with industry players and analysts ascribing it to inflationary pressures.
“Whether it was Durga Puja or Diwali, this year’s festive season was not that great for the industry,” said Rahul Mehta, President of Clothing Manufacturers Association of India, adding, “After that too, especially in December, markets slowed down quite significantly. That is also reflecting in summer bookings by our members right now.”
He also added that since buying clothes is something that can be postponed due to inflationary pressures, sales have been hit.
CEO of Spykar Lifestyles said that people are becoming wary of how they spend their money and on an average, sales could have been better by 10-15 per cent than what has been seen so far.
It was also pointed out that even during Diwali or Durga Puja, festivals where people spend more on clothes, consumers were still spending conservatively.
High inflation impacted discretionary spending of consumers in Q3, which even impacted stores like DMart, described as a ‘deep value retailer’ by analysts.
This slowdown in discretionary spending is said to be due to several factors, including a decline in pent-up demand and an increase in inflation hitting households according to a report by Kotak Institutional Equities.
Bharat Tex Special Report 2026 
