The long, lazy summer days spent with great food and good company and accompanied by an ever-growing pile of mango peels as well as nectarine pips, watermelon rinds seem to have gone out that’s gone.
Presently South Africans are driven by the desire to make use on Black Friday deals (or what they believe are great deals) and the first thing to removed when budgets are tight is fruits.
“Fruit is a constant luxurious item that is always in demand,” states Julian van der Nat who is the manager of Subtropico agency in the Tshwane market. Black Friday month end is the slowest day of the week in the fruit halls as well as the halls for vegetables. This marketing success that was washed over in the United States – convincing consumers of their new tastes – is according to him nothing more than an unhealthy trend.
The pursuit of supposed agreements reminds him of the pensioners who gambled their last dollars Van der Nat remarks, and rather than focusing on the increase in consumer debt the state gets its money from the tax revenue generated by this Black Friday shopping frenzy.
“The most efficient way consumers can make savings is the vegetables and fruits, and particularly fruits. The moment is a challenging time of the year. First, it’s Black Friday when people splash every penny, and then they await the Christmas bonus. They spend the entire amount on gifts and gifts for Christmas. After that, it’s the beginning of the year and the kids go back to school, with all the costs.”
Van der Nat observes that in the holiday season the fruit industry is directly competing with the sale of alcohol and more and more, technology-driven gadgets that may dilute the tradition-based emphasis on hospitality and food.
Vusi Mahlangu in the Subtropico agency in Tshwane municipal market. Tshwane Municipal Market
“Fifty percent of our customers in the market have grocery stores, too in addition to fruit and other vegetables. The market is telling us that if they’re unable to offer Black Friday specials, they’re not getting any customers into the stores.”
The tweet of reporter Nicole Barlow on X caught his attention this week. Barlow reveals her dismay over the cost of cutting flowers. The tweet reflects the current state of the economy and, as she writes. “I was able to determine the cost of the big size of the bouquet, and I nearly fell over when I saw the price. In order to put things in perspective I would say that the cost of the bouquet is half of the amount I have to pay in monthly bond installments.”
For more information:
Julian van der Nat
Subtropico
Email: [email protected]
https://subtropico.co.za/