Stores owned by Bangladeshis in Midtown Manhattan sell the same kind of perfume as Macy's but at 60 percent less than the department store. Over the last decade, the number of perfume and gift shops in the area has grown from four to 18, spanning five blocks down Broadway, between 27th and 31st Streets. Most of the stores sell wholesale products – including perfume from France, Italy and the United Kingdom – which attract businessmen on a daily basis from neighboring states and other countries. Traders say that the perfume business gained strength in New York due to its decline in Dubai.
One can see that the number of customers has recently increased. Owners are working to advertise their stores to Macy's customers in an attempt to attract tourists and locals away from what is known as "the world's largest store." Name brand perfumes, which can be found at Macy's, retail here for 40 to 60 percent less, making them accessible to lower-income customers.
After walking down Broadway, just a few blocks from Macy's at 34th Street, I see Jack Perfume on one side of 30th Street and Nuzhat USA on the other.
While the inside of Jack Perfume is small, its customers don't seem to mind. Pleased, they take the perfume they want and buy it at wholesale price. This representative of The Thikana visited the area on April 23, two hours after stores opened. Inside Jack Perfume, businessmen from South Africa and Latin American were negotiating the prices of different perfumes, eventually purchasing: Sex in the City; Pasha De Cartier; Fantasy; Euphoria; Angel; Shalimar; White Diamonds; Balenciaga de Paris; and Maria Sharapova; they also bought several dozen gift boxes.
After concluding business with his customers and inviting them to come again, Zakaria Chowdhury, the store's owner and president of Jubo League USA, sat in his chair. Displayed in front of him was a New York Times article on perfume shops in the area, along with a copy of the current issue of The Thikana. As Bangladeshi customers do not usually visit this store, the salesmen were really surprised to see me coming in.
The New York Times article notes, among other details, that on the glass door of Jack Perfume there is a promotion of a 70 percent discount on products, with a set of Maria Sharapova perfume sold at only $10.
Several other customers arrived soon there after. Observing their interactions with the owner and salesmen, it appeared they were frequent customers to this store and simply listed their orders without bargaining, as the earlier businessmen had done. The salesmen went upstairs to collect the requested items and came back carrying packages of goods. The atmosphere in the store shifted. Thanks to the change in weather, Chowdhury said, the number of customers had increased compared to last year, and there was more energy in the store; the stagnation had gradually withered away. Jack Perfume opened in 2003 but Chowdhury has since opened the Perfume Warehouse, a large-sized warehouse on 30th Street, to accommodate his growing inventory of perfumes, frequented by customers from Africa, the Caribbean, Spanish-speaking countries and Jamaica.
Nuzhat USA is situated just on the other side of Jack Perfume. Because of the huge crowd, it was impossible to go inside. The faces of the customers indicated that they came from several countries. "Please pray that this summer we will have better business than last year," said store owner Sabuj Hossain. He agreed that the warmer weather had increased his business.
The same kind of crowds prevailed at Manhattan Perfume, ST Perfume, Manhattan world, Dewan Fragrance, KS Perfume & Digital, Cartoon Connection Wholesale, and Beauty Perfume & Gift. Crowds just as large as those in the perfume stores could be seen in other stores, including those selling watches and brand name bags. According to store employees, sales increase on Saturdays and Sundays, though there are fewer customers during bad weather.
Canal Street, several blocks downtown from this area, is the location of many Bangladeshi-owned stores which are facing many financial problems; however, they are organized under one umbrella organization and businessmen in Midtown are trying to do the same. They have established the NRB Business Association in coordination with Bangladeshi businessmen in Manhattan; Zakaria Chowdhury is president of NRB and Lutfar Rahman, the owner of Orlando News on York Avenue, is secretary. The purpose of the new association is to promote cordial relationships among traders and commercial opportunities – it is through the conduct of these businessmen that the traditional hospitality of Bangladeshis spreads through several countries, including America. Store employees also added that cordial interactions with the customers give customers a pleasant perception of Bangladeshis and their country of origin. The NRB Business Association indicated that almost all the salesmen in the stores were Bangladeshi.
After the world-famous New York Times highlighted the rise of Bangladeshi perfume traders in Midtown Manhattan, the Bangladeshi community is now being drawn to the stores to purchase perfume for their loved ones.
