The month of Ramadan is here again. It is a period when Muslim faithful across the world observe fasting for a period of 29 or 30 days.
Generally known as a period when muslims get closer to their creator, they abstain from drinking and eating for a good part of the day.
The period has, however, been known to come with low sales, particularly for those in the food and drink business.
That is why many hotels and restaurants complain of bad business during the period.
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The reason for the low patronage is not far-fetched. For a population that has a large number of muslims, it is just natural that the fasting period would experience a lull in the sale of foods and drinks.
Also, the schedule of eating is also responsible for the development.
For instance, muslims wake up as early as 4:30 in the morning to eat and abstain from food and drinks till the time the sun sets, which is usually around 7 p.m.
This change is bound to affect the sale of food in the day time, especially, those engaged in fast foods.
Hawkers of snacks and drinks by the roadside are perhaps, most affected.
The reason is that most of these businesses are not open when the Muslims are awake for the morning food called Sahur and not open when it is time for Iftar, breaking of fast in the evening.
Investigation by The Next Edition, revealed how much the Ramadan period has affected sales.
A popular pepper soup joint on Allen Avenue in Ikeja, Lagos, called Goat Hunters complained of lack of customers as a result of the fasting. A waitress who refused to mention her name said that from the low turnout in the restaurant, it was clear that most of their customers were Muslims.
She said: “Since their fasting started about two weeks ago, this place has been deserted. It is not as crowded as it was some months ago.”
Mrs. Aishat Lawal who hawks herbal mixtures usually taken to allegedly cure pile and other diseases told our correspondent too that she had lost most of her customers as a result of the fasting period.
According to her, most of her customers take the drinks before their day’s job in the morning. But since the Ramadan period started about two weeks ago, the patronage has gone down drastically.
“Many of my customers are fasting so the business is not moving like it used to. Although some buy to take in the night after breaking their fast, it cannot compare to the normal period before the fasting,” she said.
Hawkers of snacks on the roadside have not had it easy too. Although they still make profit, they say it is not as usual.
“This business thrives during the day. Those that are fasting cannot buy from us during the day. Obviously the sales are not as high as usual,” a young girl who refused to give her name told our correspondent.
Ditto for one Mama Blessing who sells beans cake.
She sells in the morning between 7.00 a.m. and 10.00 a.m. However, due to the fasting period and the accompanying low patronage, she has rescheduled her mode of operation. Now she sells in the evening when muslims break their fast.
“I have many Muslim customers. I usually sell in the morning for about two to three hours. I thought that instead of selling in the morning and not making profit like normal days, I should shift it to the evening period. That is why I shifted my operation to evening,” she said.
Asked if she makes as much money she was making before Ramadan when she was selling in the morning, she said: “The difference is not much. But you know in the morning, people come here before going to work. There are offices around, so their staff stop by before getting to the office. But in the evening when the sun sets, most companies would have closed. All the same, I thank God.”
Aside from the shift in schedule, the economic recession has made matters worse for those who sell raw food and fruits. The level of patronage is not as high as it was.
The prices of fruits are not as affordable as they were a few years ago. For instance those who buy two oranges to break at night have reduced it to one.
Traders at Ashade Market, Agege, lamented that they were not making good sales because Muslims were not buying their goods.
A trader who sells food seasoning, Mrs. Remi Awoyeni, said: “We used to look forward to the month of Ramadan because Muslims come to shop for food items. The few ones that come around now only inquire about the prices and leave. They complain that food items are extremely expensive and there is no money to buy. We are not pleased with low patronage,” she said.
A garri trader at Balogun Market in Lagos Island, Mrs Fatima Awosanya, said at the weekend that her customers had not been patronising her in the last three months.
She lamented that sales had been very discouraging.
“Before now, we used to anticipate Ramadan rush, which comes once in a year but the story has change,” she said.
The price of a bag of garri, common staple among low income earners, has increased.
Although many believe that the Ramadan period is largely responsible for the low patronage, general increase in the prices of food stuffs has not helped matters too.
Many argue that with a good economy Ramadan period should not be a season for the kind of low patronage being experienced at the moment.
