KARACHI: Pakistan’s largest flag manufacturer, VIP Flags, is expecting around 50 percent growth in sales this year as the public marks the country’s 78th Independence Day with unusual zeal, fueled by celebrations of victory in the May 2025 conflict with India.
The two nuclear-armed neighbors, which have fought three major wars since 1947, engaged in their deadliest fighting in decades this May. The fighting ended on May 10 after US mediation, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government declaring victory and saying it had downed at least six Indian fighter jets.
Officials have since linked the conflict’s outcome to the heightened national fervor surrounding August 14 this year, reflected in booming flag markets and sales of other Independence Day paraphernalia.
“Our business, all the businesses have grown 50 percent,” said VIP Flags CEO Nisar Ahmed Sheikh, adding that much of his stock had been sold to marchers rallying in support of Pakistan’s armed forces during the war with India.
VIP Flags manufactures flags for domestic customers, the armed forces, and international buyers in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and holds Guinness World Records for the largest flags made in 2004 and 2008.
