By Ramesh Mathew
Staff Reporter

People across Qatar may have been busy celebrating Eid al-Adha over the past few days, but it is business as usual – or in some cases more than that - for small neighbourhood retail outlets and restaurants.
Growing competition and a spike in demand, especially in and around areas that are visited by large groups of people during the holiday period, are cited as the main reasons for continuing to function on these days.  
While some small restaurants remain closed for a day or for some hours on the first day of the holidays, most continue to function and see a steady flow of customers during this period, it is learnt.
Explaining the rationale behind keeping shops and restaurants open during the holiday period, a long-time restaurant operator in a busy city area said they chose to do so in view of growing competition in the business.
“Moreover, if a restaurant remains closed for, say, two consecutive days, it may send the wrong signal to customers. Some may feel the place has been shut down due to its failure to meet the hygiene standards of the local municipality,” said the manager of the eatery in Mansoura.
The manager also stressed that due to the steep hike in rents in recent years, no retail establishment could afford to stay closed for more than a day. The situation was different about a decade ago, the businessman recalled, as the staff would benefit from an entire day off as well as truncated hours on another day.
Operators of neighbourhood groceries have been even busier, it seems. Many of them point out that the chances of receiving more orders for home deliveries increase as many people choose to enjoy the holiday by staying back in the country during this period. This, in turn, leads to extra work for the shop’s staff, according to one of them.
Barbershops, too, have remained busy, especially in the evening.
Meanwhile, laundry worker Sat Narayan said except on the morning of the first day of Eid, the outlet has remained open throughout the holiday period. In fact, he explained, establishments like his received more customers during weekends and holidays.
A few years ago, when the store remained fully closed on the first day of Eid, some regular customers were forced to return without getting their job done. Since then, the operators have decided to keep the shop open after the morning hours.
Several other commercial outlets and people engaged in various sectors, including those providing essential, emergency and health services, have continued to function normally during the holidays. For some, in fact, the workload increases during this period in order to ensure that things go on smoothly.