Petty traders plying their business in Nigeria’s capital city, Abuja, are showing resilience despite rising inflation. The traders who sell essential commodities, especially foodstuffs spoke to New National Star about the challenges they are facing.
In July 2021, food inflation was measured at 21.03 per cent and overall inflation was 17.38 per cent. But before this, inflation had been on the rise in the first five months of the year and through 2020.
Ujunwa Jude, a trader in Kado village who sells foodstuffs including rice, beans and perishable foods, said that the rising prices of her wares was a continued source of concern for her. She complained that for some months now her profit margin had kept declining. She said, “There is no profit, we are not happy. You buy stockfish of N180 and sell it at N200 with only N20 profit and yet the customer buying it is still complaining. It is not the same quantity as before, they have reduced the size and added money.”
According to her, the prices of the goods she sells keep increasing with each visit to restock which has been discouraging.
“The prices are changing every day. It is so discouraging. The last time I bought this 5 kg (kilogramme) of Semovita, I paid N2,200 and sold it for N2,500. I went back to buy another one to replace the one I sold and it was N2,700, this time. I had to add N200 to the money I made from the last sale so I could buy it again. And I cannot sell it for more than N3,000 even if I fear that the price might increase when I go to the market again. I consider my customers.”
The traders are caught between increasing their profit margin to break even and sometimes have to sell at the cost prices of the goods . Peter Paul, a goat meat seller who ply his trade at Jahi, said that it had never been this bad. He recalled when a kilogramme of goat meat cost N450. Now, he said, nothing tangible could be bought with N1,000.
“A full goat as of 2020 cost between N12,000 and N13,000,” he said. Pointing to a medium-sized goat which had been killed, he continued, “Today I bought this goat at N18,000 and with my expenses and everything, it is giving me N19,500. Before, the most it would cost with logistics (fee) was N15,000. They say where they bought the goat in Arewa it is costly there, so when they bring it to us here and we complain they will tell us everything is high.”
“This is our business. We cannot just stay at home; we have to sell. So anyhow we see it we have to manage it that way. Our customers who are used to us understand the situation, based on the fact that we have been together since day one, so we can’t neglect anyone. We just sell with little gain. A kilo used to be N450, from that it went to N600 and now it is N2,000. If somebody leaves his house to buy meat for N1,000, he cannot buy it.”
In June, with food inflation at 21.38 per cent and overall inflation at 17.75 per cent, the World Bank in the Nigeria Development Update stated that inflation coupled with high unemployment rates was driving more Nigerians towards criminal enterprises. By April, inflation had risen for 20 months since 2016. The Gross Domestic Product also contracted twice in 2020, making Nigeria enter its second recession in four years and the worst one in four decades. This has caused small businesses to suffer great losses. Jude said she had sold the same wares for two years but it got worse late last year.
“Though I am new in this business, there has never been a time when I experienced this before (price inflation). I have been trading for two years and in that while it was not like this. At the time I started, 5kg of semovita was N1,600/N1,500 and now it is N3,000. There is no gain in selling these goods. Plantain of four pieces is N500, beans is N1,100 for a mudu (kg). And customers have their budgets and will keep pleading with us to sell at cheaper rates. Sometimes we end up selling these things at cost prices to make sure we break even,” she said. “Sometimes we sell some things at lower prices and use gains from others to make up. It is not encouraging since we are running at a loss. Like today I had to come to the market late as sales are reducing.”
Alhaji Isah who sells tomatoes, pepper and other leafy vegetables alongside potatoes in Kado market said that his case was not different from others in the market. Making gain or breaking even was no longer guaranteed.
“A basket of tomatoes that was between N3,500 and N5,000 before, today I bought it at N9,000 today. Sometimes we make gains, at other times we don’t,” Isah said. “I increase prices according to changes in the market. If they increase the cost of my goods when I come back, I increase it too, if they reduce it, then I reduce it. I cannot make them more costly than they need to be because I won’t make gains then. I don’t add extra money.”
For these traders, despite trying circumstances the will to make sure their businesses survive is topmost but balancing it with pleasing their customers becomes a Herculean task. Mercy Stephanus who sells masa, a rice meal, and rice at Next junction said the water quantity in the mixture had increased overtime. She has also reduced the quantities sold to her customers which causes a lot of complaints but it is either she does that or make no gain at all.
“I don’t make gains like before. Things have changed and we are only managing. It was not like this at the beginning of the year. One piece of masa was N50 but it is bigger than the size I am selling now. I reduce the quantity and also have to add a lot of water to the mixture. If it is too thick, I won’t gain,” she said.
“Even my plate of rice has reduced. Some customers after I serve them the small rice starts complaining asking why it is so small. I have to explain that it is not my fault.”