Prices high but everybody loves their inner wear

MANGALORE: With the price of cotton yarns shooting up, buying inner wear has become a costly affair. But no one is forgoing their inner luxuries for a few rupees extra.
True, the cost of hosiery products has doubled recently. For instance, the cost of VIP Bonus vests, which was Rs 64 three months ago, is now Rs 95. Meanwhile, the price of Jockey briefs has shot up from Rs 115 to Rs 169.Similarly, the prices of inner wear manufactured by major companies including Euro have also increased considerably during the last three months. Children's t-shirts priced at Rs 30 now costs Rs 49.
But people aren't ready to give up their favourite brands even if the prices have increased. Lakshmana Kamath, a retailer, told TOI that people are ready to buy hosiery products of their choice even if prices have doubled.
Kamath said short supply was a cause for concern as companies supplied only half of the quantity ordered.
Earlier, many major companies were marketing packs of three vests each at a Rs 99. But now, one vest costs just as much.
T Udayashankar, partner of U S Impex, Tirupur said the main reason behind the recent price rise was a lack of raw materials. Tirupur, a place that once played host to nearly 6,000 hosiery product manufacturing units, now faces a crisis as it suffers from reduced cotton yield and increased export of raw materials. Several smaller units have already been closed while many struggle to survive, he explained.
The Economic Times has been reduced drastically owing to other reasons too. Nearly 750 hosiery dyeing and bleaching units in Tirupur alone were closed when issues relating to environment pollution cropped up following a high court verdict, he said. The rise in petroleum products and shortage of manpower too have contributed to the reduction in hosiery production, he added.