Kadooment sales down

HOPES OF PROFITING from Grand Kadooment were dashed yesterday for many small entrepreneurs.Many of them who positioned themselves along the route for the jump beginning from Warrens, St Michael, outside Warren Motors, to the Spring Garden Highway, reported that sales were slow and they were not as good as they had hoped.In fact, those vendors retailing water, drinks and food in the Warrens-Green Hill area were particularly disturbed by poor sales and losses on their investments.One vendor on Green Hill, Lisa Harding, the only vendor who spoke before the camera, said: “The bands went ’long too fast. We can’t mek no money out here. I lose money today and had to give away my food.”Harding, who invested about $1 500, noted that the last band left Warrens at approximately midday, and the spectators went too, so no one took up the lunch specials the vendors had prepared.She suggested that the National Cultural Foundation (NCF) should organise the movement of the bands in 2011 to ensure that they lingered in that part of the route until 2 p.m.Two other vendors of water, drinks, fruits and snacks said they had set up their stalls between 5 a.m. and 6 a.m. said business was “not so good”, but people bought water the most.Corporate communications specialist of the NCF, Wayne “Kool” Simmons who spoke with the DAILY NATION in Waterford, St Michael, said: “It is a situation where many of them are first-time vendors. It is going to be a learning curve. “There was a town hall meeting that we had in that area. “The response was not particularly good to it and the purpose of these meetings is to inform people as to what their expectations are. Without that intelligence maybe some of them were unaware of what to anticipate. I’m certain that what they have learnt would [help] in the future.”Business activity along Waterford was almost non-existent, except for the sole snow cone vendor, who indicated around 2:30 p.m. that sales were also going slowly for her, but she was not complaining.A few food and drinks stalls in the Brighton area attracted many spectators who lined the route to view the 22 bands.Between 5 p.m.  and 6 p.m. vendors of toys, those of food, drinks and water, and owners of established beach bar and restaurant, Weisers, on Spring Garden Highway were not terribly happy, but said that they were hoping for the best by the close of the day. (SR)