“I had no choice but to buy flowers these last few days. The beautiful ones were already chosen and bought, so I had to choose carefully, which took more time.”
On the 29th of Tet, many traders still have many flowers that have not been sold yet - Photo: AN VI
From Ho Chi Minh City to the West or up to the Central Highlands provinces, there are still a few people carrying a lot of belongings to go home for Tet. Some people choose to buy a few pots of flowers along the road as Tet gifts for the whole family.
Don't intentionally buy late.
Like the case of Nguyen Thi Ngoc Chau (23 years old, living in Binh Phuoc province) who just came home on the morning of the 29th of Tet. The young girl is a final year student at Ho Chi Minh City University of Technical Education, working part-time at a convenience store so she had to wait until the evening of the 28th of the lunar calendar, when she had enough shifts, to receive her salary and take it home.
“I finished working until late on the 28th. I was so tired that I had to stay another night. Early in the morning on the 29th, I rushed home early,” Chau said.
Working part-time, Chau had no gifts to bring home for her family. On the 29th of the lunar calendar, most of the shops were closed. Chau could only buy two pots of flowers for her mother to display at home for Tet.
Every year, she and her mother go buy flowers very early, partly to choose beautiful flowers and partly to help the seller sell out quickly so they can celebrate Tet.
Coming back late this time, Chau said she was very embarrassed to stop by to buy on New Year's Eve like this.
“I just chose two pots and asked for a good price. If I had bargained any more, people would have said I was buying at this hour to lower the price.
"I had no choice but to buy flowers these last few days. People have already chosen the beautiful plants, so I have to choose carefully these days, which takes more time" - Chau shared.
Tuan chooses flowers to display for Tet - Photo: NVCC
As for Phan Cong Tuan (23 years old, living in Ben Tre province), he just got home on the morning of the 29th lunar month and also hurriedly went to choose flowers to display for Tet. Tuan said that every year, he chooses the flowers for Tet at home, so his family doesn't want to buy them in advance, waiting for him to come home.
“Every year around the 26th of the lunar calendar, my family cleans and brings flowers home to display. This year, due to work, I can’t get home until late on the 28th,” Tuan said.
Tuan affirmed that he did not have the mentality of buying flowers late to force the seller to lower the price. On the contrary, he wanted to buy early to choose beautiful flower pots.
“I didn’t bargain at all. When buying on the last few days, sellers usually offer lower prices for customers. For example, the marigold pots I bought today were only about 130,000 VND/pot, while a few days ago they were up to 200,000 VND,” Tuan compared.
"Business must accept"
Mr. Nguyen Danh Thanh (38 years old, living in Binh Phuoc province) is sad because it is already the 29th of the lunar calendar but not more than half of his Tet flowers have been sold. He said that this year the flowers are selling slower than previous years even though the quantity he bought is less.
“I have been selling these pots since the 23rd of the lunar month, at that time selling for 65,000 VND/pot. On the 28th of Tet, I reduced the price to 50,000 VND, and now on the 29th, I have to sell them off, only selling for 40,000 VND but they are still unsold,” Mr. Thanh lamented.
He said no matter how unsold the flowers are, there will be no breaking of flowers or pots, and he will clear the shop on the first day of the month. If there are still buyers, he is still willing to sell them cheaply, and if they are not sold out, he will hire a truck to take them back to the garden.
“Business must be accepted. The value for flower players is calculated by the value of the plant, the need to use it and the time of use during Tet.
The closer it gets to Tet, the shorter the number of days to use flowers for Tet, so it's reasonable for me to proactively lower the price for customers," Thanh explained.
According to many sellers, it is rare to see customers forcing prices to buy Tet flowers in the last days - Photo: AN VI
Having sold Tet flowers for six years, Mr. Thanh said that nowadays, very few people wait until New Year's Eve to bargain for unsold flowers like before. In cases where people buy flowers at the last minute, it is usually because they are short of flowers, want to display more, or because people are late returning home from work, so Mr. Thanh is always happy to sell to customers.
As for Ms. Le, who still has about 200 pots of marigolds on New Year's Eve, she confirmed that she will not sell them off but will reduce the price moderately.
She said each flower pot is the result of a year's worth of hard work and sweat, and even if it doesn't sell, that's the rule of business, and the price can't be lowered too low.
“For example, now I sell for 50,000 VND/pot, at most 50% off, there is no way I can sell it that cheap.
"No matter what, it's my whole year's worth of work, so I have to accept the risk of selling. I can't destroy or sell Tet flowers too cheaply," Ms. Le affirmed.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/cuc-chang-da-moi-mua-hoa-ngay-29-tet-20250128130620636.htm
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