Rainy season: Bargains from umbrella sellers

The umbrella is certainly the most requested and most used item in the district of Abidjan at this time.

In any case, at all the crossroads of the communes of Abidjan one meets young vendors who offer the precious sesame of the moment to protect themselves from the rain.

Places such as “Liberté” and “Nouvelle gare” in Adjamé, “Siporex” in Yopougon, “Grand Carrefour” in Koumassi, “Gare de Bassam” in Treichville, the various markets etc. have become real sales counters.

At the Adjamé forum on Nangui Abrogoua boulevard, for example, the umbrella stands steal the show from a number of items on sale.

good deals

According to Miss Koné Fanta, she manages to place more than fifty umbrellas per day. This allows him to achieve a daily turnover which fluctuates between 35 and 45000 FCFA.

“As I get my supplies from a supplier at the Blackmarket, after the sale, he withdraws his share and I find myself with a net profit of between 10 and 20,000 FCFA per day”, she says.

Her comrade Kamagaté Bintou, she explains that the supplier delivers the small umbrellas to her wholesale at 800 FCFA each and the large ones at 1500 FCFA.

“We sell the small umbrella between 1500 and 2000 FCFA and the large one between 2500 FCFA and 3500 FCFA on the market”, she notes. Before specifying that customers do not discuss prices much.

“They are always surprised by the rain and are in a hurry to find something to cover themselves with,” she says.

The rainy season which is at its beginning announces happy days for these seasonal traders.