Lack of customers at craft market worries basket sellers

THE Laguna Craft market on Saturday was quiet with few customers.
There were a lot of paintings, carvings, baskets, bilums for sale but only a few customers turned up.
Angela Steven and her sister Pricilla from Southern Highlands spoke of their experience and the challenges they faced when selling their items.
“We both sell mostly weaved baskets in the Port Moresby craft markets at the Holiday Inn, Ela Beach, Arts Centre and now Laguna on Saturdays,” she said.
“However, with the Covid-19 pandemic, sales have been slow because we don’t have a lot of tourist customers.
“Our sales entirely depend on customers, if there are a lot of tourists, we earn big like from K1,000 to K2,000.
“But when there are just few customers we make roughly K400 to K500.
“One challenge we face is that many of us sell the same type of baskets so there is competition.”
The baskets are priced according to their sizes.
The prices range between K10 to K600.
“The baskets are sent from home upon request. We buy them from the villagers and later do mark-up prices so that we make a profit.
“For example, if we buy a basket for K50 from home, we sell it for K100,” Steven said. She said it took a weaver two to three weeks to weave baskets, depending on the sizes.
Steven, 26, has a son while her sister Pricilla, 23, is single.
They both do marketing to help their parents.