It’s three days into the new year and we have listed our resolutions to follow. The most common among them is to stay fit. While exercising and following a balanced diet helps in fitness, playing a sport has physical benefits; it even reduces stress and enhances one’s emotional well being. So, this year, if you want to take up some sport, head straight to the sports shops street near GPO, Abids. In fact, as you travel from GPO towards Kothi, you can see rows of shops displaying different sports fitness gear/equipment. With cricket bats, stumps, gloves, helmets and other paraphernalia , shuttle rackets, volleyball, football, carrom board, frisbee, skipping ropes and chess are also available here. Sports organisers can also pick and place an order for mementoes and trophies in different sizes from these shops.
Trust and more
Md. Yousuf Khan of Ten Sports store has been in the business for over three decades. Trust is paramount here, he says. “This is one of the oldest markets in this field and we target the middle-class segment,” he points out. The mementoes are bought for school and college events and retirement functions.
Mementoes displayed at the shops
The road witnesses heavy traffic on all the days now but it was not the case when the market had just began. Syed Jawed of Sports House recalls how the place was called a ‘silent area.’ “The traffic was very less in those days and one could spot a bus every one hour. It used to be so silent that I could shout from here and the person standing on the opposite side could easily hear me,” he smiles, adding, “Since there was not much competition, people would not bargain like they do now.” At his shop, Jesudas, a private company employee has come along with his two sons from Dilshuknagar to buy cricket bats.
Safdar Ali Khan of TMS Sports is a new entrant in the business. An active sportsperson, he remembers coming here as a student to buy cricket bats. He observes they lose out customers because of online shopping. “Many parents come here with their children during holidays especially summer, we also have many fitness enthusiasts dropping in during winter to check the fitness gear,” he says.
Olympia Sports is one of the oldest shops
Syed Pervez of Olympia Sports has several anecdotes to share about his father Syed Ismail, who started the shop in 1957. “My father was dedicated to the shop and would work 14 hours a day,” he recalls adding his father’s favourite line was ‘ dukaan hai to sab hai .’ Ismail also earned goodwill among dealers and customers. “He always believed in paying first and then taking products from dealers. Once a company had sent products but he returned it because he had not paid the money. He was a simple man and faced challenges alone.” Syed Pervez’s brother Syed Meraj is a cricket coach.
