Not long after dawn on Friday, December 31, 2021, traders in Merkato opened their shops, anticipating a spike in business as the Christmas holiday approached. As the cold morning got warmer, the market grew more hectic. The cool air intermingled with a cacophony of sounds.

Traders haggled with customers, and heavy carts screeched as they made their way down the market's narrow thoroughfares. Street vendors were yelling loudly, attempting to advertise their goods on sale amid the racket. Within a few hours of the first shops opening, Mercato's quarters buzzed with activities as crowds of shoppers flocked to the market. Dubai Tera, well known as a trading hub for textiles and apparel, was particularly busy with marketgoers looking to add to their wardrobes, many for the coming holiday.

True to its name, much of the goods traded in this part of Mercato are imported from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

A four-storey building in the middle of Dubai Tera hosts several shops specialising in the trade of chiffon dresses made from lightweight and sheer silk and synthetic fibres. The name comes from a French word meaning "cloth." Colourful and typically made of silk or nylon, chiffon dresses have become a popular item among the women of Addis Abeba in recent years.

Chiffon was first woven in the 1700s in Europe. Originally, the yarns were silk. The dresses were a mark of high status due to the expensiveness of the fabric. Polyester chiffon has become widely accepted in Ethiopia for its low cost and durability. The garment has long been seen as cultural wear in the country's northern parts, particularly in Tigray Regional State.

Chiffon has slowly crept into the urban market over the past half a century, finally making it to the front displays of fashionable boutiques in the capital in the last couple of years.

Lula Ahmed, 65, a mother of eight, bought four metres of chiffon fabric from one of the shops in Dubai Tera for 1,200 Br. She had come looking to order a tailored chiffon dress she planned to wear for Christmas but was forced to buy the fabric instead. The weavers in the shop told her they would be unable to deliver the dress in time for the holiday. They were too busy with similar orders.

Lula did not argue. She knew she could take the fabric to one of the many similar tailors in the area.

"I bought the same fabric a few months ago,” she told Fortune. “I prefer to wear chiffon dresses during the holidays.”

Though the fabric is available elsewhere in the capital, Lula had journeyed to Mercato, hoping to get a better deal. However, she found no price lower than 300 Br a metre was available. The last time she bought chiffon for the New Year in September, it was sold for half this price.

“I've wasted my time coming here,” she said.

Others like Mekdes Geta could not make the trip to Mercato. A university student, Mekdes was relieved to find tailors who could deliver a chiffon dress before the festivities on January 7, 2021. A shop located inside Medhanialem Mall, a 10-storey complex located on Cameroon Street, offered 2,500 Br for 3.5 metres of chiffon fabric, including the tailoring.

Three to five meters of chiffon makes a full dress depending on height.

Although she had paid 1,600 Br for the same dress two years ago, Mekdes was willing to spend 56pc more on her outfit this time around.