Delhi's Wedding Fabric Markets Struggle as GST Confusion Drives Buyers Away

Delhi's wedding season is in full swing, but its fabric markets are eerily quiet. Despite the peak November-to-January wedding rush, traditionally the most lucrative period for the textile trade, footfall at key shopping hubs has dropped sharply. Lajpat Nagar, known for its ready-made and semi-stitched garments, and Mangolpuri, the go-to destination for wholesale unstitched fabric, are both reporting unprecedented lulls in customer traffic.

Traders blame confusion over the revised GST structure, which has created mistrust between sellers and shoppers just when business should be booming. What was meant to simplify taxation has instead become a flashpoint of suspicion and frustration on both sides of the counter.

The GST Shift That's Actually a Hike

The rules sound straightforward enough on paper. Stitched garments up to Rs. 2,500 attract 5% GST, whilst anything above that threshold now carries 18%. Tailoring services adds another 5%. Unstitched fabric remains at 5%, except for certain synthetic or woollen varieties that attract higher rates.

The government's intention was to rationalise the tax structure and bring relief to mid-range clothing. But in the context of wedding shopping, the new system has backfired. Most wedding outfits—embroidered lehengas, designer blouses, silk brocades, zardozi work easily cross Rs. 2,500. 

Rajesh Malhotra, who runs a boutique in Lajpat Nagar, cuts to the chase. "Wedding garments are never below Rs. 2,500. Earlier, anything above Rs. 1,000 attracted 12% GST. Now the threshold has moved to Rs. 2,500, but the rate has jumped to 18%. Customers think prices should fall. For us and for them, it's only become costlier."

The Trust Problem

What's really damaging business isn't just the price increase, it's the suspicion it breeds. In markets where relationships and word-of-mouth have traditionally driven sales, the erosion of trust is proving catastrophic. Shopkeepers who've built their reputations over decades now find themselves having to defend their pricing structures multiple times a day.

Harish Verma, a Mangolpuri shopkeeper, says customers often walk out angry. "People say we're lying. They see online headlines saying GST has been reduced. But for wedding fabric, the rate has actually gone up. Explaining that is a daily battle." His neighbour, 32-year-old fabric trader Ritesh Goel, agrees, "Some customers argue with us for 20–30 minutes. They think we're inflating the GST portion. When we explain, they say 'you're fooling us'. This heavy mistrust rarely existed earlier."

Empty Shops in Peak Season

These markets typically see wall-to-wall crowds from Diwali onwards, with shop owners hiring extra staff to manage the rush. This year, many of those temporary workers haven't been called in at all. Alok Jain, an older trader in Mangolpuri, says, "Usually there's heavy crowds during wedding season. Now it's halved. Customers feel everything has become premium: high GST, high fabric prices, high labour costs."

In Lajpat Nagar, boutique owner Neha Bhatia sees the same pattern. "People are postponing purchases. They browse, they take photos, but they say 'we'll come next week'. Next week never comes."

This year's sharp temperature drop has made things worse. Winter weddings mean heavier fabrics—velvet, silk, woollen blends—which fall into higher GST categories and cost more to begin with. Mohammed Salim of Mangolpuri explains, "It's very cold. People want velvet, silk, heavy brocade. Who will buy cotton now? But velvet and woollen blends often fall under higher tax categories. Customers don't understand why prices jump from Rs. 1,800 to Rs. 3,200 so quickly."

Shoppers Are Just as Confused

The confusion isn't one-sided. Sania Sharma, a Delhi University student buying fabric for her cousin's wedding, whom we met at Mangolpuri, says: "One shop told me 5% GST, another said 18%. I genuinely thought someone was cheating me."

Rohit Khanna, another shopper at Lajpat Nagar, puts it simply: "If anything above Rs. 2,500 attracts 18%, wedding shopping automatically becomes expensive after the GST reform." Aarti Sharma whom we met at Mangolpuri, adds, "Bills feel heavier this year. The only relief is cheaper tailoring services." Aarti is right as the reforms have reduced tailoring service charges from 18% to 5%, the only relief for the customers, but a heavy blow for the tailors themselves, as Bilal Siddiqui, a tailoring master who has a small shop behind the Lajpat Nagar main market, tells us, "They did put a blow on my stomach. People are already used to squabbling with me over prices, as they never understood how much effort it took; now they have legally made me fall into a crater with lower GST Rates. It all adds up to lesser profits for me as now I have to reduce my margin too, to not make it cheaper than older rates."

Traders remain hopeful that clarity will eventually return, though they are not holding their breath. As Rajesh Malhotra says, "Until customers understand the GST structure, this tension will continue."