KOCHI: Onam used to be the biggest season for flower vendors in the past. But the Covid spread has resulted in business drying up during the festival season. For two consecutive years, the business of small and wholesale flower vendors has been hit due to the pandemic.
“This year too, business is dull on account of Covid,” said Ramaatha, a 56-year-old street vendor near Town Hall.
“I start selling flowers from the morning and hardly earn `200-500 by evening. This year, it is even more pathetic compared to last year. I don’t even earn enough to have three meals a day,” she said. A native of Coimbatore, Ramaatha has been selling flowers near the Town Hall during the Onam season for two decades.
With the rise in Covid cases, Onam celebrations have been restricted at organisations and offices, and with educational institutions remaining shut there is no demand for flowers. Sreenivasan, a wholesale flower dealer from Palakkad, said that compared to last year, there is a slight improvement in business.
“We had set up our stalls here last week. We earn between Rs 5,000 to 10,000 a day with three stalls. Last year, it was much, much worse. In the coming days, we hope the sale will pick up,” said Sreenivasan, who sells vegetables at other times.
He said that though the flowers are purchased at wholesale rate from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, the price has increased due to the hike in fuel prices. The most expensive and in-demand is the white flower that cost around Rs 700 to 800 a kilogram. The other flowers like marigolds( both orange and yellow), globe amaranth (Vadamalli), ghanera (Arali) etc command Rs 200 to 600 a kg. The price of the flowers is slightly high this time,” said Akhila P, who came to buy flowers for laying a floral carpet at her home. For flower vendors, who depended on the season for good sales, Onam has lost its sheen.