MAKKAH: The secondhand furniture market has been boosted by the ongoing expansion of the Grand Mosque in Makkah.
Dealers are flocking to residential buildings and shops earmarked for demolition by the committee responsible for the ongoing development of the mosque.
They are buying used furniture and appliances including air conditioners, beds and refrigerators among others. Such items are considered to be valuable to the dealers in terms of sell-on value.
One dealer, Hamad Al-Saad, said development projects in Makkah have revived the scrap and secondhand furniture market.
“People are rushing to buy used furniture. They are usually in very good condition and it’s very cheap for us to buy from owners of repossessed properties,” he said.
He added that this greatly increases the chance of making a good profit when selling the goods on.
On the other hand, fellow dealer Mastoor Atiq claimed some unscrupulous people are falsely claiming they were selling their furniture because their property is being demolished to make way for expansion projects.
“One guy offered SR300,000 to buy someone’s furniture. The building owner refused to sell and asked for a higher bid. I thought it was ridiculous,” he said.
Another dealer, Najim Al-Zahrani, said furniture dealers made several calls to find out when the third and most recent phase of the expansion would be taking place. This was so they could be available with their trucks on the first day of the eviction to strike deals for furniture.
“They take the furniture and head to the Haraj (market) straightaway,” he said.
Mustafa Lutfi only became involved in the secondhand furniture market two years ago. He entered into business with a friend, providing SR20,000 as startup capital. His partner is responsible for transporting the goods.
“In phase one and two of the Grand Mosque expansion projects, we made a profit of SR96,000. It encouraged us to stay in business,” said Lutfi.
When phase three started, they were ready to make a strong impact. In only a few days they made an estimated profit of SR100,000, and they are still striking deals with evictees.
It is expected that their profit will exceed SR200,000 by the time all their goods are sold, as the eviction process continues for over one month. Lutfi said a used air conditioner bought for SR100-120 would sell in the Haraj for at least SR300.
“Each item is sold for triple the price we pay for used furniture. It’s a great income.”
The committee involved in evicting the owners of properties earmarked for demolition is composed of members from several governmental sectors, police, Saudi Electricity Company, the municipality, and Saudi Telecom Company.
The committee responsible for expanding the Grand Mosque is currently developing the northern area of the mosque grounds. The evictees have been compensated.
