Chattogram’s second-hand clothing markets buzz as winter approaches

As winter approaches, Chattogram’s second-hand clothing trade is gaining momentum, with warehouses and wholesale markets bustling with imported winter garments.
From Amir Market and Asadganj to Zahur Hawkers Market and Teribazar, traders are gearing up for a busy season, with business associations projecting that wholesale and retail sales will surpass Tk1,000 crore this winter.
Md Yunus Zahur, a trader at Zahur Hawkers Market, told BSS that colder weather is expected to set in by late November. With Ramadan falling in February, most of the season’s business is likely to be concentrated within a two-month period. Buyers from distant areas have already started purchasing winter clothes from the wholesale market.
With winter approaching, traders in Chattogram’s Khatunganj area, who deal in consumer goods throughout the year, have begun sourcing second-hand winter clothing through the local Amir Market.
Khatunganj trader Md Mohiuddin said the main buyers of second clothes are people from lower-income and lower-middle-income groups, as well as working-class families, who consider these garments an affordable way to keep warm. The presence of attractive international brands in the bales has also drawn interest from young people and middle-class consumers in the city.
Zahur Hawkers Market is a long-established wholesale and retail hub for winter clothing, catering to the city's middle- and lower-income populations.
Tipu Sultan of Binimoy Store said he sells shirts, trousers and T-shirts before winter but switches to warm clothing once the season begins.
Prices at the market vary depending on quality. Women's sweaters and jackets cost Tk200–800, men's sweaters Tk100–500, men's jackets Tk300–3,000, children's sweaters Tk50–600, mufflers Tk40–200 and winter caps Tk50–250.
Trader Elias Uddin said the market has three sections with more than 800 shops, including 200 large, 350 medium-sized and the remainder small shops.
He expects daily sales this winter to range from Tk10,000 to Tk12,000 for small shops, Tk20,000 to Tk25,000 for medium-sized shops and Tk50,000 to Tk60,000 for large shops. He estimates that the market's total turnover could reach around Tk200 crore over the next three months.
Mozammel Haque of Riazuddin Bazar told BSS that there are roughly 15,000 shops across 110 markets, about half of which deal in winter clothing. He estimates that daily sales exceed Tk1 crore, although exact figures are difficult to determine.
Every evening, clothing from these wholesale markets makes its way to roadside stalls across the city, particularly in New Market, KC Dey Road, Laldighi Par, Anderkilla, Bandartila, Gate No. 2, Bohaddarhat, Agrabad and Bayezid Bostami.
Abdul Mannan of the Teribazar Traders Association told BSS that Teribazar, a traditional textile market with about 3,000 shops across 82 markets, is particularly known for children's winter wear. 
He said the market's total trade volume could not be determined.
However, traders attribute the rising prices to the strengthening US dollar and increased shipping and container freight costs amid ongoing geopolitical tensions.