RAWALPINDI, Aug 5: Commercial markets in twin cities of Rawalpindi-Islamabad were flooded with customers as people prepared to buy festive wears for Eidul Fitr.

According to shop owners, the response from customers is fabulous, as majority of the people got their salaries at the beginning of the month, adding that many people preferred to shop in advance in order to escape meeting exorbitant prices of outfits at the end of Ramazan.

“We have been witnessing extraordinary rush for the last two days. People have got their salaries and secondly it is a weekend.

We have displayed sales on various items to attract customers,” Waheed Mughal, owner of a famous outfit store on Bank Road Rawalpindi Saddar, told Dawn on Sunday.

People from other parts of the country but working in Rawalpindi-Islamabad are shopping in advance for their families as they usually leave for their native towns, a week before Eidul Fitr.

“I spent Rs20,000 today as part of Eid shopping. Things are too expensive particularly clothes of children. Just imagine that I paid Rs3,000 for a shalwar qameez,” Arif Ali, a government servant in Islamabad from Bannu district told this reporter in Jinnah Super.

Shopping spree reached its peak on Sunday at the historic Raja Bazaar, which was flocked by low-income families and middle-class shoppers and it was difficult to move around easily due to the crowd.

Good weather conditions also provided an opportunity for the heat-stricken people to go out for shopping, as temperature has come down significantly, due to heavy rainfall on Saturday.

“I prefer to shop in advance as it needs many days to shop for a family of 10. It is not possible to buy all festive wears from one shop at once. I go from shop-to-shop and pick items at affordable rates,” Wahida Noreen, a school teacher said at Benazir Bhutto Road.

This Eid, shopkeepers have dumped some new designs of traditional clothes and khussa (traditional shoes) that are quite popular among customers and are also cheap in prices compared to the comfort shoes offered by other footwear stores.