the one thing on most peoples minds during the lockdown was the vibrancy that mumbai is so known for buzzing streets and stores as well as streetside stalls famous for bargains and now after a long gap of four months some of that liveliness is back with brihanmumbai municipal corporation bmc allowing all shops to open on all seven days a week as against on oddeven days as mandated earlier these establishments have also recently got a twohour extension allowing them to stay open until 7pm malls and market places will also be allowed to operate from today as per the norms set by the state government while mumbaikars are finally being able to indulge in retail therapy its also a relief for the retail industry as they slowly get back on the path towards brisk business says kumar rajagopalan ceo of retailers association of india rai its a good thing that shops are now opening seven days a week we believe shopping does develop a sense of wellbeing but more importantly its a crucial part for the economy to be kept in motionbeauty fixes and rain gear in demandits early days yet so the numbers are not as they used to be but some mumbaikars are out and about gloves in hand and masks on and for a lot of shoppers high on their list is buying beautyrelated items nidhi anand a resident of colaba says i felt stuck when shops were shut as i could not get my hair colouring roller i also picked up a few new nail polishes to brighten the weather and my mood adds ratna agarwal another resident who stays close by i wanted wax strips as i cant go to my salon which is at a distance away from my home i also chose some eye makeup as thats the most visible part of the face now thanks to the mask some stores have takers for innovative rain gear informs manish nagda of a shop in vile parle east we have these magic umbrellas that transform into a spectrum of colours when the rain falls on them of course the threefold ones are most popular as they are easy to carry around but we dont have as many footfalls as last year as schools colleges and offices are shutstreetside bargains are backthe stalls and shops are being cautious and following the safety norms some of the areas such as hill road and linking road in bandra and colaba causeway are seeing a few stalls ready to welcome customers back they are also being cautious by following the safety norms says imran akbani of a ladies footwear stall at colaba the going has been so tough for us over the last few months when we first opened on oddeven days it was tough to get a boni selling a product but we have started selling two to three pairs a day since the last 10 days its not much but ghar pe baithne