Hawkers who recently moved to the Rockey Street Market complain that the rental is too high, writes Jubie Matlou
It’s a rare sight in South Africa to spot a white hawker selling his wares side by side with a black woman grilling mielies on a brazier. Andy McKay is one of the few white hawkers ekeing out a living by selling goods on the newly established Rockey Street Market in Yeoville.
For London-born McKay (40), life in Johannesburg is much better than in the cold and cramped English capital. “Unlike in London, one can still find a way to make a living in Johannesburg,” he says.
McKay got into the informal trading market fours years ago, selling goods from door to door. Before that, he worked as a butcher on the East Rand. He decided to try his hand selling goods when the butchery closed down because of a low turnover.
“I moved from Fordsburg, outside the train restaurant to this market last December, immediately after it opened its doors to hawkers. It’s a relief from carrying a heavy bag from one door to the other,” says McKay.
He said business has been very bad. “I made some money during the festive season. But for the first two weeks of January, I made sales of about R200. It’s unreasonable for the council to expect me to pay R420 rental a month.”
He argues that efforts should be made to promote the market so that people will turn up in numbers to buy goods. “The council should also study how other markets operate, such as the Bruma Lake Flea Market.”
McKay relocated to South Africa with his parents in the mid-1960s. He visited England in 1990 to “try out things” over there, but found conditions very difficult and decided to come back to South Africa. McKay currently shares a flat with a friend. He has no dependants, following a divorce from his wife a few years ago.
Ghanaian Yusuf Abubaker (38) is a qualified crane operator, but couldn’t find a job in his home country. Like many of his peers, he headed south in search of better opportunities. He became a cobbler by chance, by simply observing an established shoemaker plying his trade on a pavement in Yeoville.
Abubaker arrived in Hillbrow in early 1993. He stayed at the Fontana Inn for five months, until he had exhausted the $1 000 he had saved as a security guard at the British embassy in Gabon.
“In the five months I stayed at the Fontana, I befriended a Zimbabwean who accommodated me. I spent some time doing odd jobs; sometimes I would hang out with an old shoemaker on Rockey Street. That’s how I began mending shoes for a living.”
Abubaker worked on a street corner for about three years before moving into the new market. “I make about R750 a month. Business varies from day to day. Weekends are busier than in the week.”
Abubaker’s business has grown in the past few months. He now employs two assistants – a South African who helps him mend shoes, and a Kenyan woman who does dressmaking. “The idea of a market is very good, as compared to a street corner where one is exposed to the elements and crime,” said Abubaker.
Like many other traders, Abubaker finds the rental charges for trading sites unaffordable. “Not many traders are making good business. I hope the negotiations with the council over rent will bring about an amicable arrangement for both the traders and the council.”
Abubaker is married to a South African woman and the couple have a three-year-old son.
Mpho Monegi (34) is a Vista University graduate. But high unemployment among newly qualified teachers led her to set up a stall at the market.
Unlike other traders, Monegi is new in the informal trading business with no background of selling on the streets. The opening of the Yeoville market provided her with the opportunity to make a living as a hawker. She sells a variety of goods, from hair products to cigarettes.
Monegi said she made about R1 000 in January, an indication that business depends on the type of goods one is selling. Snacks and cigarettes sell quickly compared to clothing, for example. However, Monegi reckons that there is a need to regulate prices. “Our prices vary greatly, it’s unfair. There should be a way to ensure that prices are the same for similar goods.”
Monegi is single, and shares her flatlet with her 13-year-old son.
The corner of Cavendish and Hunter streets is the market’s busiest area – abuzz with life and vibrancy as kwaito music blasts from portable radio sets. This is the corner for the latest haircuts and styles – marked by the silhouetted reflections of a myriad images from the randomly placed mirrors.
Each morning, Freedom Ndlovu, a 26-year- old bachelor from Umlazi, Durban, comes here to attend to his many clients who just show up unexpectedly. Competition is stiff, evidenced by the way the competing barbers invite every passer-by on the street to come for a haircut. However, it’s not a big deal for one barber whose hair clipper is jammed or doesn’t have a shaving machine as all the equipment needed is used communally. It appears to be a gentleman’s agreement for the trade.
Ndlovu said he makes about R60 on a busy day. “I don’t own the three hair clippers I use for my trade, these belong to a friend with whom I share 50:50 each day’s turnover. I lost my own equipment while I was operating from the streets.”
Barbers occupy the smallest trading sites of the market – they are twice the size of an office desk and are rented on a R7-a- day basis. Ndlovu and his colleagues are putting a case to the council to reduce the daily rental to R3. To crown it all, they are regarded to be using the least electric power, in comparison with the food outlets, and don’t have to pay extra charges for their consumption.