adminNoble Ncube Business Reporter
THE Consumer Council of Zimbabwe (CCZ) says consumers should refrain from spendthrift habits during the festive season so as to guard against bankruptcy in the forthcoming year. CCZ Matabeleland regional manager, Mr Comfort Muchekeza said although consumers had the right to spend their cash at their will, they should be wary of the consequences of over-spending, a situation that might leave them insolvent in the wake of the New Year.
“As we approach the festive season, workers were used to the 13th cheque but now that is not the same. Naturally, consumers will need to spend in various ways to make their holidays worth celebrating. In the minds of the consumers Christmas and New Year’s days have not changed, there are still days of celebrations.
“Therefore, we are saying with or without bonus, it is good for consumers to spend wisely. They are allowed to be merry, but whatever they spend they should know that January is coming. They should not be found looking for “loan sharks” to pay school fees, buy new uniforms for children and cover rentals at home,” Mr Muchekeza said.
He urged wholesalers and retailers to embrace fair business practices through pricing their goods at comparative prices since most of their products are imported from South Africa.
The continuous depreciation of the rand against the US dollar, which is the widely used currency in the country, has been an advantage to local companies as it enhances their disposable income when purchasing in the neighbouring country.
“On the issue of pricing, we want service providers to understand the current situation of consumers. Over the past months we have seen the fall of the rand and that is to our advantage.
“We have South African products in our supermarkets and as such consumers should enjoy the products from across the Limpopo. These products should be cheaper because of the strengthening US dollar thus retailers should put in place reasonable prices,” said Mr Muchekeza.
Economist Mr James Wadi said consumer spending during the festive season was always high but urged the public to ensure they keep enough disposable income to cater for their needs in the beginning of next year.
“Festive holidays are always a difficult period. People need to plan carefully on how they will enter the New Year as 2016 might be difficult in the beginning. Consumer spending is usually high during this time. Therefore people should be very cautious when they are spending. Due to the fall of the South African rand, most of our relatives and friends in that country will also shy away from visiting because it is expensive for them,” said Mr Wadi.
Renowned economist, Dr Davison Gomo said retailers should desist from creating artificial shortages in a bid to inflate prices.
“Business owners should rather capitalise on the increased numbers of consumers during the festive season to increase their stock. They must work hard to make sure they do not create artificial shortages of groceries to avoid what happened before the use of multiple currencies,” he said.
Bulawayo Residents’ Association chairman, Mr Winos Dube said the hype and excitement brought about by the festive season seems to have disappeared this year due to the prevailing economic hardships and the liquidity crunch being faced by the country.
“We need to spend sparingly this holiday because the mood is not the same like what people are used to. The mood is very low, there isn’t much excitement. I believe experience has taught people to be careful when they spend,” he said.
The business environment is already facing its fair shortage of hard cash since most of the employed including civil servants are still to receive their bonuses.
Economists are of the view that the delay of civil servants’ bonuses would also trigger other businesses to deprive their workers of bonuses culminating in low turnout of shoppers with consumers opting to change their US dollars to rand and travel to South Africa for shopping.
Bongani Ndlovu