Tailoring shops do brisk business ahead of Eid al-Fitr

The tailoring shops across Qatar, in particular at Souq Al Ali, have started to receive increasing orders for making new thobes (Qatari men's traditional dress) ahead of the upcoming Eid al-Fitr.Speaking to local Arabic daily Arrayah, a number of customers and tailors stressed that demand for stitching new thobes considerably increases before Eid from Qataris and expatriates, especially for children and young people.Some shops have almost reached the maximum number of orders that they could deliver before Eid holidays. Some others will continue to receive orders until the last five days of Ramadan, so they would extend their working hours and increase the number of tailors in all shifts.Ibrahim Mansour, a customer, stressed that the prices at Souq Al Ali, which has many tailors, are much cheaper than any other place. He noted this creates good competition, which makes tailors keen to attract customers by offering them better services at more affordable prices.When a person becomes a regular customer for the same shop for many years, he will be offered quality service at excellent rates. Accordingly, Mansour opted to deal with the same shop for more than ten years. He noted that the charges for making thobes for children could be set at QR30, and QR30-50 for adults, depending on the special requirements of the customer.Abulraheem Mohamed is a regular customer of the same shop at Souq Al Ali as he always enjoys a good experience regarding prices and timely delivery. He said that dealing with the same tailor has fostered mutual trust, which saves him a lot of money and effort to compare prices. Some tailors exploit the urgency of the occasion and increase their fees and the prices of fabric to unreasonable rates, which discourage customers from going to them, Mohamed said.Salem al-Marri, another customer, estimated that the prices for making thobes at Souq Al Ali to be almost 50% than elsewhere in the country. For instance, the overall price for a good thobe for children could range around QR80 at Souq Al Ali while it goes up to QR140 in some other commercial streets. Besides, tailors in Souq Al Ali often deliver the thobe after five days of receiving the order, while others could take up to 10 days, he added.Zakaria, a tailor, said that most shops at the Souq started to receive orders for Eid more than a week ago and the number of orders are steadily increasing as this is considered as a good season for business. He stressed that all varieties of fabric preferred by customers are available at the market and they suit all budgets.