By Dennis Peprah
Sunyani, (Bono), Oct 2, GNA – Traders in Sunyani have expressed concern about the influx of shopping malls in the regional capital, threatening the collapse of their businesses.
According to the traders, mostly women, the low pricing regime at the malls were not only forcing many of them out of business but also wearing down their market shares.
The Ghana News Agency (GNA) noticed during a market survey that the shopping malls, mainly China malls, were springing up rapidly in the capital and thereby depriving the local traders their market share.
Scores of shoppers were sighted at some of the major malls like the newly opened Makro Mall situated along the Sunyani-Abesim Highway, the Red Star Mall at the Sunyani Victory Park and Lemon Mall at the Sunyani-Penkwasi Traffic Light area.
Most of the malls sell basic products like cooking utensils, electrical gadgets and appliances, clothing, mattresses, furniture, and interior decors among others.
Retailers, mainly at the Sunyani Central Business District (CBD) enclave, have made a passionate appeal for some kind of regulation to ensure local enterprises and businesses were not stalled.
Madam Theresah Asantewaa, a shop owner, called on the government to set up standardised and harmonised pricing models to enable the indigenous shops and retailers to compete with the Malls particularly, the China Malls.
Madama Mercy Amoah, dealer in clothes, cited for instance that dining tables set which sold at the local market around GH₵1,500 were selling at GH₵1,000 whiles cooking utensils selling at 1,300 was selling at 800 cedis at the China malls.
“I personally visited one of the China Malls which was just opened along the Sunyani-Abesim highway for window shopping and their prices were too low to compete with,” she stated.
GNA
Edited by Bertha Badu-Agyei
Reporter: Dennis Peprah
Email: [email protected]