Hawkers make a living on buses around city<\/p>\n
Leo Wahyudi S., The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Although city buses are not really supermarkets, passengers may
\nbuy a variety of goods on them at low prices.<\/p>\n
It is very common nowadays to see hawkers getting in and out
\nof buses, not only at bus stops but also at traffic lights in the
\ncity. Sometimes even along toll roads during traffic jams.<\/p>\n
Even people traveling on the buses along the main roads, such
\nas Jl. Thamrin, Jl. Sudirman, Jl. Gatot Subroto, and the Jakarta-
\nMerak toll road, will have a chance of hearing hawkers offering
\ntheir merchandise, which includes stationery, housewares, snacks
\nand fresh fruit.<\/p>\n
Sabam Manurung, 34, a welding supervisor at a construction
\ncompany three years ago, is a hawker. He was laid off by his
\ncompany following the economic crisis in 1998.<\/p>\n
The father of two children, who lives in Manggarai, South
\nJakarta sells scissors, glue, cotton buds, and pins. \"I like
\nselling goods this way as it is profitable,\" said Sabam, who
\ncomes from Sibolga in North Sumatra.<\/p>\n
He purchased his merchandise from wholesalers in the Mester
\nmarket at Jatinegara, East Jakarta, because it was cheap there.<\/p>\n
He made a profit of 30 percent to 50 percent. For instance, he
\nbought a pair of scissors at Rp 750 but sold them at a minimum
\nprice of Rp 1,000. But sometimes he managed to sell them for more
\nthan that.<\/p>\n
He claimed that with an average sale of four dozen to five
\ndozen items per day, he could earn a net income of about Rp
\n30,000.<\/p>\n
\"That's much better than my income as a supervisor a few years
\nago,\" Sabam proudly told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Emil, 24, another hawker, seemed to be luckier in selling
\nmultipurpose knives, which move well. \"I can sell on average
\nthree dozen knives per day, earning a daily net income of around
\nRp 70,000,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He relies on his ability to use promotional patter to attract
\npassengers to buy his goods. He seemed to have boundless reserves
\nof energy for getting on and off buses that passed in front of
\nhim to explain in amusing fashion the use of his goods to
\npassengers.<\/p>\n
\"My patter is the key to attracting buyers,\" Emil said, noting
\nthat most passengers bought his goods due to his persuasiveness
\nand the lower prices he offered compared with those for goods
\nsold at supermarkets.<\/p>\n
Emil, who has been working as a street hawker for 12 years,
\nunderlined the importance of communication skills to win over
\npublic transportation passengers. Otherwise, a hawker would
\nsuffer great losses, he said.<\/p>\n
Sabam and Emil said that they enjoyed being street hawkers as
\nthey were their own bosses, despite the fact that sometimes they
\ngot into difficulty.<\/p>\n
\"Sometimes the bus crews won't let us board. At other times we
\nhave found that passengers have felt bothered by our presence.
\nOnce I was spat at by a passenger,\" Emil said. \"I wonder why
\npassengers feel upset at us as we're only trying to earn a
\nliving.\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/hawkers-make-a-living-on-buses-around-city-1447893297",
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