All dressed up, nowhere to go: Some Malaysian cat lovers pamper their felines with Hari Raya clothes amid Covid-19

PETALING JAYA — With Malaysians not travelling because of travel restrictions, many cat lovers are ordering clothes and accessories to pamper their pets for Hari Raya.

Online shop Meowkushop has seen a 50 per cent increase in sales compared to last year amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

“This year, Meowkushop will be making 3,000 custom-made and ready-made clothes as compared to 1,500 for the previous year,” said co-founder Raja Nur Alya Raja Abd Aziz.

“I’ve also received orders from Malaysians living abroad in Australia, Singapore, Brunei, South Korea and the United Kingdom.”

The Shah-Alam business was established in 2016.

Ms Nur Alya added some of the new designs this year were the Baju Melayu Cekak Musang, Baju Batik, Teluk Belanga Songket and a Kedah-themed Baju Kurung.

Accessories to complement the clothes include different songkok designs such as Songkok Baldu Hitam and Songkok Cotton Hitam.

“We created the different designs so that our customers are not bored with the same baju kurung or baju melayu designs every year.

“Having a fan base of over 7,000 followers, we too needed to innovate and create newer designs.

“Interestingly, many cat-owners also told me that they will be getting their own Hari Raya clothes once their cats have their own clothes so that they can match with their pets.”

Clothes are divided into two categories: Ready-made clothes for cats that weigh between two kilogrammes to nine kilogrammes, while custom-made clothes are for cats weighing more than 10 kilogrammes.

The ready-made clothes come in sizes ranging from S to XL.

“Owners who have cat breeds such as the British Shorthair, Maine Coon and Munchkin would need to get their cats the custom-made clothes.

“We also plan to expand our business to eventually making traditional clothes even for other festivities such as Deepavali,” she said.

Prices from accessories such as its simple ribbon headwear to its Hari Raya clothes cost from RM5 to RM70 (S$1.70 to S$23). MALAY MAIL