LEARN WITH STEEM CONTEST: SMALL-SCALE RETAILERS | @gwillchrist

Hello everyone 😊 Happy new week.

I am here in this community @steem4nigeria to be part of a teaching contest organized by @fredquatum.

I will be teaching us about***Small scale business retailer and it's classification.

Let's go!

SMALL-SCALE RETAILERS

Small-scale retailers are individuals that own small retail stores or shops. They are always the all in all in their retail trade. They own and manage the shops. They are sole traders; such retailing is called one-man business.

The features of these small-scale retailers are first, they require little capital as stated earlier; second, they employ few or no staff; third, they take all decisions about the store and finally, they sell one or few items. Examples are hawkers who sell their goods

moving around the streets, offices and workplaces; stall holders that open their shops in major streets and busy locations, selling fast consumable goods and single shop owners who own shops and sell variety of goods at major highways and densely populated areas. The capital requirement of small-scale retailers ranges from hundreds of naira to a few thousands of naira.

CLASSIFICATION OF SMALL-SCALE RETAILERS

HAWKERS

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Hawkers are small retailers that move around from one place to another to sell their goods. They hawk their wares in major streets, offices and workplaces, motor parks and garages. Some hawkers deal with a variety of goods, such as hawkers of provisions, household utensils, etc ., while some hawkers deal with a single product such as the groundnut seller The capital requirement for this type of retail trade is very small.

ADVANTAGES OF HAWKING

Hawking trade requires small capital to start and operate.

There is little or no risk in hawking trade.

Hawkers make goods available to the buyers at the most convenient place. Hawkers require no store or shop to sell their wares.

Hawking is a means of selfemployment.

In some instances, hawkers let customers buy on credit, to be paid later. Customers can arrange with a hawker to deliver goods at an appointed time.

DISADVANTAGES OF HAWKING

Hawkers and hawking trade constitute environmental pollution.
Hawkers’ goods are most of the times exposed to the atmospheric conditions and thus may not be hygienic to customers.

Hawkers sell their goods with little profit to increase their sales.

Hawkers, in some instances, sell inferior or fake products since they cannot afford the money to buy the original brand.

At times, hawkers’ sales could be very low and sometimes, they make no sales at all.

Since hawkers do not sell in stores, there is limitation to the quantity and variety of items they can carry and sell at a time.

Hawking does not require any special skills and therefore, there are so many people that do it. Hawking trade, at times, may lead to the abuse of the personality of the hawkers, more so when children are involved.

STALL HOLDERS/SHOP OWNERS

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Stall holders are individuals that renta store or shop to sell their wares. The stall holders, in most cases, make use of a permanent store that they rent for many years as long as they remain in the trade. However, stall holders can shift their base whenever the need arises.

Stall holders or shop owners stock more varieties and assortment of goods than hawkers. They require more capital, in hundreds and at times in millions of naira to operate. Some shops are single, while some are in shopping complexes located at a particular place, selling different wares and owned by different people.

ROADSIDE OR STREET TRADING

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Roadside and street trading is done by retailers that sell their goods on the road sides of major highways in towns and villages. These wares are also displayed at motor parks, garages and public institutions and buildings, e.g ., hospitals, post offices, schools, etc. The buyers and customers are passers-by and visitors to such places. Their wares are displayed in small wooden or iron kiosk trays and racks. These display tools often expose the wares to harsh and unpleasant atmospheric conditions, thus making the wares or goods to be in bad condition. Some of the items displayed for sales are provisions

Such as persona land household items, consumable foods and assorted drinks.

MOBILE SHOPS

These are small mobile retail shops like in motor vans, bicycles, carts and lorries that move from one location to another. This type of retail shops are seen in major highways, streets and very busy places. They sell all types of goods ‘ from fast moving consumable goods to household wares. An example is a fast food van that sells snacks or a bicycle rider that sells dairy products like yoghurt, fan ice, etc. Mobile shops are different from hawkers because first, their goods and wares are better protected; second, they can carry more quantity of goods; and third, they sell more goods because they will cover more distances than an hawker.

VENDING MACHINES

It refers to the small-scale retail trade that the operators of the machines provide to the customers or is provided by self-service from the automatic vending machines. Goods like ice creams, tea (either cold or hot), chocolates, cold soft drinks, stamps, etc. are sold to customers in this way. In some instances, the customers can operate the machine and do self-service by slotting the amount of money worth of what they want to buy. At times the owner of the machine will operate it upon payment by the customer. In advanced countries, vending machines operate all day (24 hours), thus enabling the customer to buy or make a purchase any time of the day

I invite @ememibok @oasiskp @patjewell to be part of this educative contest #iteach #learnwithsteem #newcomer #steemexclusive #club75 #nigeria