Chronicle Editor
Flora Fadzai Sibanda, [email protected]
WITH just a few days left before the start of the first term for 2024, vendors and small to medium enterprises (SMEs) are making a killing from selling uniforms and school stationery.
The education sector is big in Zimbabwe and this period presents a lucrative opportunity for uniform and stationery manufacturers and traders.
In Bulawayo, small to medium enterprises and vendors have seized the opportunity created by the closure of big companies in recent years to produce high-quality school wear and stationery which they supply to schools and shops.
In the past, parents used to flood major retail shops looking for uniforms and stationery. The big retail shops usually increased prices towards the opening of schools due to lack of competition.
The situation has now changed as indigenous fashion designers and stationery manufacturers are flooding the market, making things easy for parents and guardians.
This week has been a hive of activity on the streets and small shops popularly known as “China shops” or People’s shops as parents bought uniforms and other school requirements.
Parents also swamped pavement vendors to buy uniforms and stationery and other enterprising vendors used pushcarts to move from place to place selling their products.
The exercise books were selling for as little as US$2 for 20. The same quantity sells for around US$8 at major retail outlets.
Chronicle spoke with some relieved parents who said vendors and China shops have not raised the prices for school uniforms and stationery.
Parents said they are forced to buy stationery and school uniforms from street vendors and other informal traders because their prices were low compared to big retail outlets.
While a school shoe from China shops costs as little as US$5, in big shops it costs US$40 depending on the brand, a pair of socks cost US$1 at informal shops and street vendors while in big retail shops they start from US$4.
Some parents were even buying textbooks from vendors where textbooks were selling for as little as US$3 and US$24 for a set of all the required textbooks.
The news crew caught up with Mr Melusi Ncube from Pumula who said he was happy they now had an alternative where they could buy uniforms and stationery unlike in the past when they were forced to buy the expensive uniforms from established retail outlets.
He said exercise books from China shops and vendors were very cheap and as such many of them could afford.
“Big retailers are really expensive and I don’t even know why they do that because if these vendors can reduce their prices why can’t they do the same,” said Mr Ncube.
Another parent who was buying school uniforms at Toppers retail shop Mrs Dudu Nyakadumba said although everyone says the shop is expensive, she prefers it because it sells quality uniforms.
“Yes, the prices are a bit high but I prefer this shop because I am guaranteed good quality. How can a person buy a school shoe for US$5 and expect it to last the whole term especially now that it’s raining,” said Mrs Nyakadumba.
Miss Antonette Siziba another parent said she prefers buying textbooks and exercise books from the streets because they will be the same brand as the ones sold at formal shops.
She, however, said buying uniforms from the streets was not a good idea because of the cheap quality.
“Parents should learn to plan properly for the first term because it is one of the busiest and most stressful. It’s a lack of economic literacy to have someone buying school uniforms at the last minute,” said Miss Siziba.
She said she bought uniforms from Toppers before the start of the festive season to avoid going for the cheap uniforms on the streets. — @flora_sibanda
Online Reporter