Expecting an increase in demand for foodstuff in Ramadan, leading hypermarkets and supermarkets here have started stockpiling some of the provisions specifically used during the holy month of fasting that tentatively begins Aug. 1. Huge stocks of some of the food items that will be high in demand during Ramadan which include dates, various types of beverages, oats and pastries used to prepare sombosak (a widely popular Iftar time cuisine) can be seen at various hypermarkets and superstores. Provision stores have decorated their foodstuff section with festoons, apparently a welcome sign for the holy month of Ramadan and to attract buyers to choose their favorite items under one roof. Keeping in view that most of the residents have already left Riyadh on summer vacation the hypermarkets are offering huge discounts on purchases of foodstuff in bulk. One leading hypermarket is offering oats at a reduced price of SR6 from SR8.75. However, the buyer has to buy five tins to benefit from the offer. Similarly, there are other food items offered at reduced prices, if bought in bulk quantity. Shoppers are encouraged to buy a full stock for the holy month and save considerable amount of money. However, according to shoppers the Saudi Gazette spoke to, the best buying strategy is to choose the discounted items from different stores. This requires time, patience and a little bit of market survey, said a consumer at a leading hypermarket. He said with the advent of holy month of Ramadan every provision store has been engaged in attracting the shoppers. “I would not have imagined a tin of oat available at a price tag of SR6,” said a shopper. He said he has been consuming oats, as a healthy diet for quite a long time and the price of a tin of oat was SR5.50 for several years in the past. However, with increasing inflation the price of oat has gone up at least 40 percent to sell at SR8.75, he said. The tricky thing for a buyer is that he has to buy different items from different provision stores, as the food stores have reduced prices based on the quantity they have imported, he said. He said the same goes with the price of a beverage. Some beverages, popular during Ramadan, are available at considerably lower prices than one would find at some of the leading superstores, he said. Beverages and other juices would be high in demand this year as the holy month has come in hot summer season. “A little bit market research would definitely make a saving on the monthly budget, particularly when the prices of most of the essential commodities popular in Ramadan are expensive,” another shopper said. Consumers have to be cautious while buying from small fruits and vegetable shops, which, he said are exploiting the market by charging exorbitantly on items in demand in Ramadan. __
