By Charles Tjatindi
WINDHOEK
As the year draws to an end, some residents have started taking stock of achievements this year. For Penny Paulus, a local business owner, this would entail reviewing the progress of her business.
Paulus owns Penny’s Boutique – a sewing business that designs and manufactures school uniforms and traditional attire. She started her business in 2003, after undergoing sewing and needlework training at the Okuryangava Women’s Centre in Windhoek.
At first, things went well for her business. She had her hands full with orders for her products.
As time passed by, however, her business’ finances seemingly took a nosedive as she battled to receive enough orders to keep the business going. At present, she has to be content with the limited orders she gets – at least they pay the bills.
“I promised myself that even if it is little, it keeps me going. I am not quitting…what will I do then,” she wonders.
Sadly, this appears to be a common concern for most businesspeople that trade at the Oshetu Market in Katutura. For most of these businesses, survival is a daily battle in which only the fittest survives.
“Competition is rife here. We have to constantly fight for customers, If you don’t, you will not get any,” noted Anna Samuels – another business owner at the market.
Anna reckons the market owner, whom she says allows many similar businesses to operate from the market, drives competition high at the market.
“Just look around…do you see how many fast-food outlets like mine are there? There are a lot! How can you compete against 10 other businesses at the same venue?
She feels the City of Windhoek – which owns the market – should set a limit on the type of businesses that can operate at a single venue.
Many would-be business owners flocked to Windhoek in the hope of finding employment. Once that failed, they resorted to business as a means of putting food on the table. Some have a lot of dependants that rely on them for a livelihood, and operating a business is their only viable option.
Andrew is a Grade 12 graduate, but couldn’t secure employment anywhere. He turned to business, and now owns and runs a barbershop.
“This type of thing is tough, my friend,” he says, referring to running a business. “It all depends on luck. Sometimes, you would go home without getting a single customer. That is how we survive here.”
At an adjacent car wash business, a motorist drives in to get his car washed. Before the car comes to a standstill, seven young men yielding buckets of water and pieces of cloth have already swamped it, with some already opening the boot and proceeding to clean inside. Luckily for the motorist, he has done this sort of thing before. He comfortably nods to his chosen attendant, leaving others disappointed, before taking a seat on an old oil drum nearby.
“You win some, you lose some…” came a comment from one of the luckless car washers who failed to clinch the job this time around.
Perhaps not relatively bothered by competition at the market is Tomas Petrus, who operates a shoe repair business. He has been in this trade for over 10 years, although he only opened his current business in 2004. He reckons competition is not a big issue for him as there exists only one other similar business at the market.
“I know what I am doing. I have been doing this for a long time now. That other man is taking chances with people’s shoes,” came the somewhat proud reply when asked on his recipe for success.
For Evelina Shilingo, it is unfortunately a different tune from that of Petrus. As if having stiff competition is not enough, Shilingo – a hawker at the market – has another concern. Shilingo gets her products from the north and the business depends on a good rainy season. If the rains are bad, the garden owners would simply refuse to sell her the mahangu and other products she trades in, claiming they themselves would need such products as well.
“I just have to accept it when they refuse to sell. It is their products, not mine,” she says.
The Oshetu Market is an initiative of the City of Windhoek. It is meant to accommodate hawkers and small business owners, providing them with much-needed business stalls.
If the concerns of the business owners at these stalls are anything to go by, this precious capital-intensive project could turn into a white elephant.
In the meantime, life goes on for the business owners at the market. Their greatest strength lies in the hope for a better tomorrow, and they won’t stop dreaming of better days either.