Fashion and lifestyle platforms pause again in Delhi as only essential e-commerce permitted in lockdown

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Apr 20, 2021

Following lockdown measures in Maharashtra, Delhi has followed suit with a six-day lockdown which began on Monday and has now allowed only essential retail and e-commerce deliveries, causing fashion retailers to shut their stores once again. 

As hospital beds become scarce in Delhi, the local government has imposed a six-day lockdown in an attempt to free up hospital beds and curb the spread of new variants of Covid-19, ET Online reported. This has resulted in brick-and-mortar clothing stores shutting their doors once again. 
 
E-commerce platforms focusing on fashion once again face a shut-down and platforms which do retail a selection of ‘essential goods’ are permitted to continue at a reduced capacity. Beauty retailer Nykaa has once again cut its Maharashtra and Delhi product selection to just essential goods in a move reminiscent of last year and e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart have also returned to their restricted services.   

Many fashion boutiques and malls in the national capital region had already announced a temporary closure ahead of the the mandatory lockdown. Luxury mall DLF Emporio had announced just a few days ago that it will remain closed until April 30 and numerous other stores have made similar announcements. 
 
There have been calls to expand the definition of essential goods, especially with many people working from home. The definition currently only permits groceries, pharmaceuticals, and medical equipment in both Delhi and Mumbai.  Lobby groups are in discussions to include categories including personal care goods, home and kitchen appliances, and work-from-home goods, TNN reported. 
 
With essential online orders already facing delivery delays, according to the Times of India, many shoppers are already relying on online deliveries, the Press Trust of India reported.

“With the announcement of almost week-long curfew in Delhi, we are witnessing anxiety buying at our stores in Delhi today,” Metro Cash and Carry India’s managing director and CEO Arvind Mediratta told the Press Trust of India.

“We have been witnessing a surge in demand for essentials, processed food, ready to eat and immunity-boosting products in the past couple of days and expect this trend to continue.”