Eid cards on paper fast becoming history

Shopkeepers say the trend of sending Eid cards has almost come to an end

LAHORE: The growing use of SMS, Whatsapp and mobile applications have turned the physical Eid card into a relic of yore. E-cards are now the order of the day as people are busy exchanging them over social media or messaging platforms.

First email inboxes were filled with Eid cards. Later, SMS took over. Now, messaging applications such as Whatsapp signed the death warrant of the paper Eid
Card, said people from various walks of life.

Due to the changing trends, hundreds of shopkeepers who used to sell Eid cards during Ramazan are now selling other items.



They say electronic communication is cheaper and less time consuming. The businessmen add the general public is not interested in visiting markets to purchase Eid cards.

Most of the shopkeepers in Anarkali, Urdu Bazaar and Shah Alam Market claimed there was a significant reduction in sales compared to previous years.

Talking to APP, some shopkeepers at Anarkali said the Eid cards industry was facing a huge downfall. They said SMS and internet packages or the price-hike of basic commodities were the main cause of poor sales.

"The trend of sending Eid cards has almost come to an end now," a shopkeeper at Anarkali said.

Another shopkeeper at Shah Alam Market said he opened his stall daily from 10am to 11pm, but the sales of his Eid cards were less than Rs1,000.

When asked which cards drew the most attention, the shopkeeper said those for Valentine's Day were most popular in February.

He added three days of selling Valentine's Day cards brought more profit than 30 days of selling Eid cards during the holy month of Ramazan, he added.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 20^th, 2017.