Rose makes romance costlier on Valentine's Day

Nijhum Martin, a resident of Shewrapara in the capital's Mirpur, was shocked when he visited a makeshift flower shop at the Shewrapara Bus Stand under the Metrorail Station on the eve of Valentine's Day.

The vendor initially asked for Tk250 for a single large rose. After some bargaining, Nijhum opted to purchase four medium roses for Tk550 from another shop.

"I have to buy a small bouquet of flowers with only five-six roses for more than double the price from Agargaon. I have to pay Tk1,000 even after bargaining for a while," another customer, Tanim Ahmed, told The Business Standard. 

The exorbitant prices witnessed on the eve of Valentine's Day and Pahela Falgun reflected a sharp increase compared to previous years. Customers found themselves paying significantly more than usual for flowers, as demand surges for the romantic occasion.

Shanto Das, a flower seller in the capital's Agargaon area, acknowledged the price hike and a surge in demand, attributing it to Valentine's Day and Pahela Falgun celebrations. 

He said that usually the demand for flowers rises significantly in February and March. However, the supply fails to match the increased demand, resulting in higher prices due to the vendors incurring higher wholesale costs.

As customers were taken aback by soaring prices for roses this time, on the other hand, wholesalers refuted allegations of inflating prices, instead pointing fingers at retailers.

Khorshed Alam, general secretary of Agargaon Wholesale Flower Market Association, told The Business Standard that the wholesalers failed to do good business this time as the prices of local varieties of roses dropped.

He attributed this to the availability of Indian roses in the market, saying, "We did not get the [expected] price of native roses. Instead, we had to sell it for less than the price we bought it for."

Khorshed said his sale failed to reach even Tk3 lakh out of the flowers he bought for Tk13 lakh.

"The traders had to sell roses at a lower price than they had bought it. Although the [expected] price of rose was realised at retail, wholesaler traders failed to make a profit this time. Many traders have around a third of their flowers unsold," he added.

As per Agargaon Wholesale Flower Market Association, Indian roses were sold at wholesale shops for Tk60-70 each, while the native China rose was sold at Tk 50-55 each, and the native rose at Tk15-25 each.

Traders imported roses from India at a cost of around Tk50 per piece. Besides, they had bought native China roses from the farmers at a cost of Tk40-50 each and native roses Tk10-20 each.

However, flowers worth around Tk10 crore have been sold in the Agargaon wholesale market this season, says the association.

This time, 35% of the total roses in the market were imported from India, according to Khorshed.

Godkhali witnesses drop in flower prices at last moment

Flower growers at Godkhali in Jhikargacha upazila of Jashore sold flowers worth around Tk25 crore on the occasion of Valentine's Day and Pahela Falgun this time. But at the last minute, the market witnessed a sharp decline in prices, selling roses at Tk8 each on Wednesday, down from Tk25 earlier in the week. On Tuesday, each rose was sold for Tk10-12 there.

Traders alleged that the price has dropped in the market due to the arrival of Indian flowers. Also, due to heavy rains and extremely cold weather, the farmers are facing loss due to reduced production.

Sources at the Benapole land port Customs in Jashore said from 1 to 12 February, 1,055 kg of roses was imported through the port, at a cost of $2 per kg.

As per the Department of Agricultural Extension, at least 2,500 farmers are cultivating roses on 150 hectares of land in Jhikargacha this season.

However, Upazila Agricultural Officer of Jhikargacha, Masud Hossain told TBS that he did not know anything about the import of Indian roses on the occasion of Valentine's Day and Pahela Falgun.