Online shopping, high prices leave vendors in misery after Christmas

It’s hard to tell when very small business operators get a financial bump in the usually busy Christmas season, and it’s rare for them to say business is good. Last week was no different as speaking with The Gleaner after Christmas last week, there was overwhelmingly negative feedback from sellers and buyers alike.

A veteran small business operator for 34 years, Racquel, said it was the worst she had ever encountered.

She has operated for the last five years on the Gordon Town Road, near Papine, selling clothes.

“This is the worst Christmas I have seen since I have been here. I did not see more than half of my customers over the holidays. And when I see them, they said they shopped online. And some, the only reason why I saw them is because the products they buy online did not fit, or the quality was not what they wanted. So they came to get stuff they can see and touch,” she told The Gleaner.

According to her, the US$100 threshold, which individuals can use to shop online and have their goods shipped from overseas without paying taxes, has dented the pockets of vendors like her.

“Many persons are using that. They can stay on their phones and make orders and have it deliver right at dem gate. So once people can get that, even if it is a little more expensive, they will do that rather than come out and buy,” she said.

At the same time, her biggest worry has been “the high cost of living”.

“When the price of food and goods so high, people going to think twice before buying clothes. And honestly, ova this yah Christmas, more than half of the people dem must have been thinking twice,” she stated.

“But I wish that 2025 would bring better business for me and small people like myself,” she said with hope.

About a kilometre away in Gordon Town, Meisha was getting ready to close her business place, which includes a bar. She told The Gleaner that she did not extend her opening hours over the holidays and closed at the regular 8:00 p.m. closing time.

“It could be better, but I am giving thanks. It wasn’t that busy, and there was just a little more traffic in the week leading up to Christmas Day. I believe my prices are reasonable, and I wish for better sales. That is what I would wish for in 2025,” she told The Gleaner.

Buyers complain

But buyers also complained. While many saved to purchase something extra over the holidays, they blamed vendors for the high prices.

“Everybody wid a phone can shop online. So we know di prices of the goods over dere. And the same vendors, dem shopping online or go get the things in bulk for little and nothing, come out here and selling it for an arm an’ a leg an’ dem can do better,” said Marsha Allen, who was out on Friday, hoping to see some price reductions after Christmas.

Her 10-year-old twins, Jemile, and Jemoy (boy and girl), were with her as she tried finding them the popular Crocs sandals.

“I see dem (shoes) downtown selling fi $2,500, and mi know dem too expensive. Mi also know Half-Way Tree was going to be no better. Dem fi duh betta, man. Life hard and people can’t even buy food. Is just because is holidays and the pickney dem expect something,” she explained.

For her, it’s the vendors who have reduced the purchasing power of persons like her.

“Dem don’t have to do it. Dem need fi have a conscience,” she remarked.

At the same time, some buyers have taken to social media, making similar complaints of excessive pricing.

One man complained that a bottle of 600ml Cran Wata and regular water cost $500 for both. The Cran Wata was being sold for $300 while the regular selling price in supermarkets, which already include their mark-up, is $100-$110.

He admonished the sellers, asking them to do better and asked them to have a conscience so they could sell more instead of having the same product for a long time without it being sold.

erica.virtue@gleanerjm.com