Kites, Sweets and Seasonal Micro-Businesses

How festivals create short-lived business opportunities, from Uttarayan kite makers in Ahmedabad to rakhi sellers and sweet shops, and the economics of seasonal enterprises.

Festivals create seasonal business opportunities.

Examples

Uttarayan in Gujarat: kite and manja (string) makers, with Ahmedabad hosting a famous kite market.
Raksha Bandhan: rakhi makers and sellers.
Diwali: diyas, lanterns and rangoli colours.
Holi: colours and water guns.
Sweets: mithai shops see huge demand.

Characteristics

Short selling windows.
Informal producers, often families.
Low capital needs.

Risks

Unsold stock after the festival.
Competition from Chinese imports, which fell after anti-China sentiment and import curbs from 2020.

Safety

Glass-coated Chinese manja was banned in 2016 by the National Green Tribunal after injuries to people and birds.

Economic view

Seasonal micro-businesses supplement household income.

The kite family

A family in Ahmedabad makes kites for months before Uttarayan, earning a large share of their annual income in one week of sales.

Thinking festival goods are all factory-made

Many are made by families in informal businesses.

Key takeaways

Festivals create short-lived business opportunities.
Kite, rakhi, diya and sweet makers benefit.
Unsold stock and competition are risks.
Glass-coated Chinese manja was banned in 2016.