Sachet water and fruit hawkers in Enugu State capital have decried low patronage in their businesses due to the increasing rainfall.
also reports that there was a similar decrease in the demand for fruits as a result of increase in rainfall.
Some of them, who spoke with the News Agency of Nigerian (NAN)on Wednesday, admitted there were low sales from both businesses.
Mrs Uju Okonkwo, a dealer in sachet water, told NAN that the rainy season hardly attracted many customers to her, thereby decreasing her daily sales.
“I hardly finished four bags of sachet water in a day, since the rainy season began l sell between five and seven bags daily, which is not encouraging,” Okonkwo lamented.
Another sachet water hawker, Master Chigozie Dim, said that the rainy season made it difficult for him to make appreciable profit.
“With my sachet water business, I assist my parents with the money I make from it, but with the rainy season, I find it difficult to raise reasonable amount of money,” he said.
Miss Happiness Uchechi, a water melon seller at Amechi Bus-stop, said that she had been recording low profit in sales since the rainy season set in.
Uchechi said that the business witnessed little or no activity during the rainy season, adding that the fruits’ business could only be revived after the rainy season.
“It is not easy with me doing these businesses during rainy season because I hardly finish my fruits in a day and people find it difficult to patronise us during the rainy season,” she said.
Mrs Nonye Ofoma, a fruit seller at Mayor Market, said that she always diverted from fruits to other delicacy businesses like roasted corn, coconut and local pears during the rainy season.
“During rainy season, there is always low sale in fruit business but switching to other delicacies such as roasted corn with coconut and local pears, I also make huge sales,” she said.
However, she said switching over to other business during this season made no difference in terms of number of sales when compared to fruit business.
“At least I make almost the same profit as it is in fruits business, which is between N4,000 and N7,000 daily,’’ she said.
At Kenyatta Market, Mrs Rejoice Eze, said she had been in the fruit business for many years, adding that there were other items she usually switched over to once the rainy season set in.
“As soon as it begins to rain, the fruits’ business becomes so slow and with low patronage.
“I always turn to other business like vegetables, which is always in abundance and with high patronage during the rainy season,” she explained.
