News / National
Zimbabwe customer is no longer king
05 Jun 2019 at 18:25hrs | Views
"Customer is king" is an adage that places the customer at the heart of any business. That adage is no longer applicable for Zimbabweans where customers have to push and shove to get basic commodities.
While most basic commodities have resurfaced in most shops after Government amended Statutory Instrument 122 of 2017, which lifted the ban on imports of certain commodities, service remains a nightmare as consumers continue to spend hours in queues.
Prices pegged by retailers are so prohibitive that one wonders if there is any country in the world that is more expensive than Zimbabwe.
Most of the manufacturers, retailers and other business players are pegging their prices in United States (US) dollars, demanding hard currency from citizens who are still receiving their salaries and payments in Real Time Gross Settlements (RTGS) and mobile money transfers. But while doing so, standards in some cases have gone down—it's a take it or leave it situation.
A visit to selected chain supermarkets in the capital, Harare, revealed astonishing charges on products such as soap, body creams and food. A 300ml body cream is going for $30,25, soap $3 and one kilogramme of meat is going for $16. It's outrageous.
While people can do without some of the day-to-day expectations, health is a universal right and need.
The country has been found wanting on that front where pharmacies and health outlets are demanding hard currency from patients. Not even the repeated warnings have been taken heed of by the intended recipients who continue to ignore government's plea and that of their clients. The cost of goods has increased exponentially.
On a positive note, the price of fuel, which has been erratic in the past three weeks has gone down. However, commuters who use public transport continue to bear the brunt of unscrupulous operators who continue to charge above the market rates, ripping off people of their hard earned cash.
The government must come up with mechanisms, apart from engaging the players, of making sure people are accountable for their balance sheets. Retailers seem to be profiteering beyond imagination even if basic principles of profits are pegged between 10 and 15 percent of buying price.
However, in Zimbabwe business people are making a killing out of desperate consumers, sometimes making up to 900 percent in profit. Profit percentage is equal to net profit divided by the item cost, multiplied by 100 to get a percent value. We urge retailers to be sensitive to the cause of the consumers as well as that of the government.
Some of the price tags are not justified at all and we believe once retailers adjust accordingly, the current crisis will be something of the past.
The government must also come to the party by putting systems that will eradicate the three-tier system of transacting which is the root cause of the confusion.
While most basic commodities have resurfaced in most shops after Government amended Statutory Instrument 122 of 2017, which lifted the ban on imports of certain commodities, service remains a nightmare as consumers continue to spend hours in queues.
Prices pegged by retailers are so prohibitive that one wonders if there is any country in the world that is more expensive than Zimbabwe.
Most of the manufacturers, retailers and other business players are pegging their prices in United States (US) dollars, demanding hard currency from citizens who are still receiving their salaries and payments in Real Time Gross Settlements (RTGS) and mobile money transfers. But while doing so, standards in some cases have gone down—it's a take it or leave it situation.
A visit to selected chain supermarkets in the capital, Harare, revealed astonishing charges on products such as soap, body creams and food. A 300ml body cream is going for $30,25, soap $3 and one kilogramme of meat is going for $16. It's outrageous.
While people can do without some of the day-to-day expectations, health is a universal right and need.
The country has been found wanting on that front where pharmacies and health outlets are demanding hard currency from patients. Not even the repeated warnings have been taken heed of by the intended recipients who continue to ignore government's plea and that of their clients. The cost of goods has increased exponentially.
On a positive note, the price of fuel, which has been erratic in the past three weeks has gone down. However, commuters who use public transport continue to bear the brunt of unscrupulous operators who continue to charge above the market rates, ripping off people of their hard earned cash.
The government must come up with mechanisms, apart from engaging the players, of making sure people are accountable for their balance sheets. Retailers seem to be profiteering beyond imagination even if basic principles of profits are pegged between 10 and 15 percent of buying price.
However, in Zimbabwe business people are making a killing out of desperate consumers, sometimes making up to 900 percent in profit. Profit percentage is equal to net profit divided by the item cost, multiplied by 100 to get a percent value. We urge retailers to be sensitive to the cause of the consumers as well as that of the government.
Some of the price tags are not justified at all and we believe once retailers adjust accordingly, the current crisis will be something of the past.
The government must also come to the party by putting systems that will eradicate the three-tier system of transacting which is the root cause of the confusion.
Source - businesstimes
