KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA — What should have been one of the busiest shopping periods of the year has become a difficult season for some traders at Kuala Lumpur’s Brickfields Deepavali bazaar.
After weeks of disappointing sales, vendors who once depended on passing crowds along the main roads of Little India are now turning to TikTok livestreams and social media promotions to attract customers to their relocated stalls.
The change followed Kuala Lumpur City Hall’s (DBKL) decision to move the traditional Brickfields Deepavali bazaar away from its familiar roadside locations and consolidate traders at the Kompleks Tun Sambanthan car park.
The relocation was intended to ease traffic congestion and improve the organisation of the annual festive market. However, several traders say the new arrangement has created another problem: shoppers who previously discovered their businesses while walking through Brickfields may no longer know where to find them.
For some vendors, the consequences have been severe enough to raise questions about whether they will participate next year.
Traders Say the New Location Has Reduced Their Visibility
One of the most affected vendors is Gunaseelan Subramaniam, who has traded at the Brickfields Deepavali bazaar for 25 years.
He told Malay Mail that his former roadside location attracted a stronger customer base, particularly during breakfast and lunchtime on working days.
Tourists and Malaysian shoppers from different communities regularly passed his stall, creating opportunities for spontaneous purchases.
This year, however, he said many customers were unaware that the bazaar had moved.
Gunaseelan reported earning less than RM1,000 during the three-day weekend that would normally be among his strongest sales periods.
In response, he began using TikTok livestreams to show customers where the bazaar was operating and encourage them to visit.
The videos reportedly helped some former customers discover the new location.
For the veteran trader, social media has become more than a marketing option. It is an attempt to keep his business afloat during one of the most important selling seasons of the year.
Traditional Clothing Seller Reports Sales Down to Just 10 Per Cent
Another trader facing difficulties is Sunita Gill, a vendor from Ipoh who has participated in the Brickfields bazaar since 2022.
She sells traditional Indian clothing, including kurtis and lehengas, and had hoped to repeat the stronger sales she experienced during the previous year’s event.
At her former location opposite RHB Bank, she said she could sell two or three dresses during a single lunchtime period.
This year, she estimated that her earnings had fallen to around 10 per cent of what she made last year.
The disappointing performance has led her to reconsider returning to the bazaar in 2027.
Sunita said she would prefer to find another trading location if the current arrangement continues.
Her experience highlights a difficult reality for temporary festive businesses: even when traders offer attractive products, customers must first be able to find their stalls.
Sweltering Heat Inside the Tents Creates Another Challenge
Visibility is not the only concern.
Viswalingam Karuppiah, a 61-year-old trader selling traditional clothing sourced directly from India, said the conditions inside the temporary bazaar tents have discouraged some families from spending time there.
Although the tents provide shelter from strong winds and heavy rain, he said the limited number of air coolers has not been sufficient to keep the corridors comfortable.
This is particularly challenging for clothing vendors.
Unlike online purchases, traditional clothing shopping often involves examining fabrics, comparing designs and trying on garments before making a decision.
When shoppers feel uncomfortable and leave quickly, vendors have fewer opportunities to engage with potential customers.
Viswalingam acknowledged that DBKL had reduced stall rental costs and provided sturdier tents, but said the heat remained a major concern.
He has also turned to TikTok to promote his business and attract visitors.
Why DBKL Relocated the Brickfields Deepavali Bazaar
The relocation represents a significant change for Brickfields, which has hosted its Deepavali bazaar along the traditional Little India stretch for more than two decades.
According to The Star’s September 21 report, DBKL planned to consolidate the Brickfields bazaar at a car park near Kompleks Tun Sambanthan along Jalan Tun Sambanthan 1.
The move was intended to address long-standing concerns involving traffic congestion, noise and public safety.
Previously, traders operated across several locations, including parts of Jalan Tun Sambanthan, Jalan Berhala, Jalan Chan Ah Tong, Jalan Travers and nearby roads.
DBKL also said some former trading locations were no longer available because of development.
The relocation therefore formed part of a broader effort to reorganise the annual market rather than simply move stalls for convenience.
However, local stakeholders had also raised concerns about the need for proper traffic management, toilets, enforcement personnel and other supporting facilities.
The current complaints suggest that accessibility and the overall shopping experience remain important considerations in determining whether the new arrangement works for both businesses and visitors.
DBKL Reduced Stall Fees by About 85 Per Cent
The city authorities introduced several measures to make this year’s bazaar more affordable for traders.
According to Malaysia’s Federal Territories Department, the maximum participation fee for the 2026 Deepavali bazaar was reduced to RM400, compared with RM2,626 the previous year.
That represents a reduction of approximately 85 per cent.
The RM400 payment includes:
- RM30 licence fee
- RM150 service charge
- RM150 site rental
- RM70 security deposit
The operating period was also extended from 21 days to 30 days, running from October 9 to November 7, 2026.
The department said 172 trading lots were made available across two main locations: Kompleks Tun Sambanthan in Brickfields and Jalan Bunus 6 in Masjid India.
These measures were designed to reduce the financial burden on traders and provide more opportunities to earn during the festive season.
However, lower rental costs cannot necessarily compensate for reduced customer traffic.
For businesses that rely heavily on walk-in shoppers, visibility, location and convenience can be just as important as the cost of renting a stall.
Officials Reported Steady Visitor Turnout — But Traders Describe a Different Experience
The situation has also produced contrasting accounts of the bazaar’s performance.
On October 27, The Star reported that Federal Territories Minister Hannah Yeoh had described visitor turnout at the new Brickfields location as steady since the bazaar opened on October 9.
During her visit, Yeoh said DBKL had allocated RM1.8 million for various initiatives supporting Deepavali celebrations.
The report also highlighted the reduced RM400 rental fee and the city’s efforts to provide infrastructure for traders and visitors.
However, the latest accounts from individual vendors paint a more complicated picture.
A bazaar can attract visitors without every stall receiving enough customers to generate satisfactory sales.
The distinction matters because overall attendance does not necessarily reflect the financial performance of individual businesses.
For traders selling clothing, decorations and other festive products, customers who browse without buying may not be enough to recover the cost of stock, transport and daily operations.
Deepavali Shopping Is Also Changing as More Customers Turn to Social Media
The Brickfields situation comes amid a wider shift in how Malaysians discover and purchase festive goods.
A report by Radio Televisyen Malaysia (RTM) on October 30 found that shoppers were visiting Little India Brickfields to purchase clothing, decorations and traditional food ahead of Deepavali.
Some traders described encouraging customer interest, while others said rain and changing shopping habits had affected visitor numbers.
One vendor specifically noted that more consumers were choosing to purchase products through social media.
This suggests that the challenge facing traditional bazaar businesses is not limited to physical location.
They are also competing with online sellers who can reach customers without requiring them to travel to a shopping district.
For independent traders, TikTok videos and livestreams provide a way to display products, answer questions and remind customers that their businesses are still operating.
But digital promotion is not a complete replacement for a busy physical marketplace, particularly when shoppers want to examine clothing and other products in person.
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The report explores how small businesses are increasingly using content creators and digital platforms to reach customers.
Another related report, TikTok Shop and DTI Push Safer Online Shopping After 208 Million Listings Blocked — But Are Filipinos Truly Protected From Digital Scams?, examines the growth of social commerce and the importance of consumer trust in online shopping.
Deepavali Shopping Across Malaysia Is Not Facing the Same Conditions Everywhere
The difficulties reported by some Brickfields traders should not be interpreted as a nationwide collapse in Deepavali shopping.
Bernama’s October 30 survey, republished by Malay Mail, found that festive shopping activity was building in several parts of Malaysia.
Traders in Kuala Lumpur, Klang, Seremban, Johor Bahru and Penang reported varying levels of customer interest, with many offering promotions and preparing for increased demand closer to the festival.
In Seremban, organisers expected around 30,000 visitors at the Deepavali bazaar along Jalan Datuk Lee Fong Yee during its 10-day operation.
In Johor Bahru, shoppers were visiting the bazaar along Jalan Ungku Puan for traditional clothing, decorations, sweets and snacks.
The reports show that shopping activity varies according to location, weather, consumer preferences and the organisation of individual markets.
Brickfields’ challenge is therefore more specific: how to preserve the commercial appeal of a traditional shopping district while introducing a new layout.
What Happens to Brickfields Traders Next Year?
With the 2026 bazaar scheduled to end on November 7, traders are approaching the final days of the selling season with little time left to recover lost revenue.
For Gunaseelan and Viswalingam, TikTok has offered an additional way to reach customers who may not have known about the relocation.
For Sunita, however, the disappointing sales have already raised the possibility of leaving the bazaar altogether.
Their experiences put pressure on the authorities to evaluate more than rental prices and traffic management when planning future festive markets.
Questions about signage, pedestrian access, ventilation, customer awareness and the location of individual stalls could all influence whether the next bazaar performs better.
The objective is not simply to create a more organised marketplace. It is also to ensure that traders can attract enough customers to make their participation financially worthwhile.
The bigger question now is whether Brickfields can keep its traditional festive shopping atmosphere alive in a new location — or whether more long-time traders will decide that the move has made business too difficult to continue.
