WHEN it comes to festive seasons, everyone is not only busy with food and decorations but also, planning on what to wear for the exciting and intriguing occasions. In other words, this is the time where we ‘show off’ our beautiful outfits. All boutiques and tailors are busy unleashing their collections to their customers and having their schedules packed. Busy not only from doing their own shopping but also assisting the needs and wants of others.

Vivy Sofinas Yusof and her team run FashionValet (FV), an online boutique that caters for women around the world with pieces made by Malaysian designers such as Nurita Harith, Tom Abang Saufi and lots more. However, they did not leave out the men as there are also collections for men too. FV first started in the late 2010 and had been operating very successfully since then. With the support of friends and family as well as Vivy’s personal blog readers, FV became one of Malaysia’s largest online shopping websites.

With the Raya celebration around the corner, Vivy, the owner, stressed that her team is working really hard this month for the upcoming Raya. “We have so many stocks from designers for their Raya Collection and orders keep coming in every day. So the operations department is chaotic and we even had to recruit more staff, but it is by far the most enjoyable month,” she said.

However, in terms of sales, it has been the best month her team has ever and significantly this is the first Ramadhan since they started the online business. “We were quite nervous at first, we weren't sure what to expect. But do people really buy baju kurung and kebaya online? The answer is DEFINITELY!” she said astonishingly.

When asked what was the most sought-after apparel from her customers for this year’s Raya, she replied, “Kaftans! It's foreseen though, since kaftans are so easy to wear and one size can fit many.”

Kaftans are a long cloak with wide sleeves made from either cotton or silk and can be worn by both men and women. Kaftans are said to be originated from the Middle East but now, they are widely worn all over the world. Different fabrics such as lace, satin, batik or chiffon are also used in the making of kaftans. They are very much popular at present, making it one of the styles that designers yearn for.

So, what’s your take for this year’s Raya?