There is no wedding season really when it comes to Pakistan. You will see weddings happening all year round. Of course, when there is a wedding, there is also the hunt for the perfect dress for the bride. While any business remotely linked to the wedding industry will flourish none does quite as much as the bridal dress designers. The bridal studios at Tariq Road are the topic of today’s discussion, however.
In a recent online interaction with a certain bridal studio at Tariq Road, a customer got the price quote of PKR 375,000 for a dress. But when the customer visited the shop the very next day, the price quoted became PKR 400,000. All that was different was that the customer was present and the shopkeeper could gauge their appearance. Upon referring to the online conversation, the owner moved away to assist other customers while the salesperson refuse to attend to them. Such is the case with almost every studio at Tariq Road!
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Bridal Studios – Tariq Road
Tariq Road is geographically at a prime location. It caters to people from all over Karachi (or as we say, from both sides of the bridge). This is why you will find a variety of bridal dress outlets in this market. This variety is spread out on the basis of the quality of work and to the price bracket. As a result, people who need to buy the dress for PKR 35,000 can also get to this part of Karachi, as well as those who need to boast that they bought the dress for PKR 800,000.
“Designer Studios”
The designer studios are usually found at the main Tariq road, almost in front of the Dolmen Mall. These alleged designer studios have their price range almost similar to the designers catering to the rich. They will start quoting the price from PKR 3.5 lac. If you even ask for a price below that or ask them to bargain, they will look at you with the dirtiest of stares. But the fact of the matter is that they do not follow the ethical guidelines either.
Since there is no standard price for a particular design, the ‘designers’ are free to quote whatever price they want. And they don’t shy away from it. As a customer enters, they see if they will signal the customer to the basement where they do their actual business. If the person entering looks like a potential customer they will quote the price they want but if they do not see the person completing their checklist, they quote a higher price for the person to move on.
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Preying on the mindsets of the middle class who feels it is necessary to have a brand tag attached; becoming attractive to the rich with their price range and Instagram following; these studios are making money left, right, and center. While this may be their right, their business model is sure inducing anxiety in many people hoping to get married in today’s times.
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