Nitaqat, competition see sales fall at public market

Owners and salespersons at Souk Al-Shamal, a market in the northern part of the Kingdom's capital, say they have been making much less money because of competition from supermarkets and the greater cost of hiring Saudis.
Souk Al-Shamal is one of three public markets established by the municipality to serve city residents. The other two are in Ateigah south of Batha and Rabwa in the eastern part of the city.
Mubarak Atitallah Salem Al-Rashidi, a Saudi entrepreneur selling fruit, said he has seen a considerable drop in sales. “I used to have monthly gross sales of about SR 220,000. But now, it's good if I could make SR 100,000.”
Obeid Al-Odaini, another Saudi selling fruit, said he now makes between SR 1,000 and SR 1,200 compared to SR 1,500 three years ago. “If I'm lucky I could make total sales of SR 1,200 daily if I stay longer for customers who come late at night.”
He said the reason for this is that fruit vendors from Qassim are now allowed to sell their produce at the market every Thursday at much lower prices.
“If I sell one box of a certain kind of fruit for SR 15, for instance, they sell it at SR 9. So what happens is that customers come here on Thursdays and buy all the fruit they need from them.”
He said he does have regular customers who buy his produce during the week. “But there are few customers on weekdays compared to Thursdays when the vendors from Qassim come to the Saudi capital to sell fruit. The municipality allowed them to come and sell here,” he said.
Arab News visited the office of the municipality at the market but staff there refused to comment.
Businesses are also making less profit because the Nitaqat program now requires them to hire Saudi nationals who are paid between SR 2,500 and SR 3,000 a month. “I pay SR 3,000 monthly for each of my 17 helpers. That means that my overhead cost for one month is SR 51,000,” said Al-Rashidi, who added that in the past, he could hire other nationals at a much lower monthly wage.
Another reason for the drop in the number of customers is the proliferation of many supermarkets also selling fruit and vegetables. “Many of my former customers now go to these supermarkets that are nearer to where they live. One advantage for them is the fact that these shops are air-conditioned,” he said.
Others go to Ateigah, Al-Rashidi said, even though it is in the southern part of the city, because the prices are much lower.
Another reason cited was that the market is located between Olaya and King Abdulaziz roads. “If you're not familiar with the place, it's difficult to find it,” said a Saudi fruit vendor.
While many residents call Souk Al-Shamal a “vegetable market,” there are also shops selling fish and chicken nearby. “Many customers probably used to go there to buy vegetables and the name stuck,” a resident in the area said.