Retailer Le Thi Chau said she has been selling ready-made clothes at the night market since its establishment in 2004. But in the past two years, the number of customers coming to the market has decreased, only 1/10 compared to before.
According to Ms. Chau, before, on weekdays, the number of customers was 20-30, and on weekends, it doubled or tripled. At that time, customers could only walk, and each person had to squeeze in to choose clothes. But now, the streets are empty and cars run smoothly.
“Currently, I only sell to 1-2 customers per day. Sometimes I have to sit on my phone for 2-3 days straight to prepare for the time to prepare,” Ms. Chau added.
There was a time when the revenue per night was 15 - 20 million VND, but now, Nguyen Thi Tho and her husband just display the clothes, stand around chatting until the time is up and then pack up and go home.
Ms. Tho said that in the past, new clothes were imported once a week so the designs were always up to date with fashion trends. But now, there are no new products for 2-3 months so the designs are increasingly outdated, and she has to consider reducing prices according to customer requests.
“There were days when we only sold 50,000 VND. The cost of the premises and electricity was 45,000 VND, leaving us with a surplus of 5,000 VND. My husband and I have considered stopping our business at the night market and opening a small stall at home to save money,” Ms. Tho added.
Also suffering from the same situation of sluggish business, packing up in the afternoon and packing up in the evening with no customers, Ms. Nguyen Thi Nam said that she had heard from the market collector that the night market might move to a new location on the Kinh Cut River embankment, also in Ward 1, Vinh Long City. “If it moves there, I will not agree because that road is very deserted. It is already difficult to do business here, let alone move there,” Ms. Nam added.
On January 16, speaking with a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Dang Van Luong - Chairman of Vinh Long City People's Committee - informed that Ward 1 night market in Vinh Long City has 106 small traders, the market has been operating since 2004 until now.
According to Mr. Luong, small traders at the market sell a variety of products such as clothes, shoes, helmets, etc. But currently, business at this market is facing difficulties. This is a common situation because after the COVID-19 pandemic, people's economy has been facing difficulties, so everyone is saving money and limiting shopping.
According to Mr. Luong, when the project investor hands over the management of the Kinh Cut river embankment to the Vinh Long City People's Committee, there will be a meeting with traders to reach an agreement and make a plan to move the night market there.
"The purpose of relocating Vinh Long City night market is to restore urban order in Vinh Long City and ensure the operations of agencies, schools, and religious establishments on August 19th Street," added the Chairman of Vinh Long City People's Committee.
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