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AN INVESTIGATION INTO MARKETING IMPLICATION OF STREET TRADING IN URBAN CENTERS

ABSTRACT

This research was designed to investigate the marketing implication of street trading in Abia state urban areas, with Umuahia metropolis as a case study. This study aimed at finding out the underlying forces of street trading. This marketing implication of street trading revealing the classes of the society that patronizes the street traders and why they prefer it to super market and conventional markets. Finding out the problems of street trading to the society. Data was collected from both primary and secondary source using questionnaire, interview and observation. Data presentation and analysis were done using tables and chi-square test, which also served the purpose of testing hypothesis and interpretation of result. The following findings were drawn; lack of job opportunities contributes a lot in the increase in street trading in urban city’s. Street trading encourages the sales of good and quality goods, street trading helps in selling goods to consumers at close reach, they sell their goods cheaper than these in the other market. The researcher recommend that government should reduce rural urban migration, which is one of the major factors that contributed to street trading and also they should provide opportunities in our local areas by locating industries to the local area. 

CHAPTER ONE

1.1         INTRODUCTION

The urban population explosion is a chronic problem of almost every contemporary developing country. It is attributed to the pattern of population growth and the nature of urban employment. There are evident that in developing countries in which Nigeria belong, the yearly rate of urban population growth is extremely high. Anderson (2002) observed that developing countries today face greater urbanization challengers than developed countries faced. Sarr (2000), the united nation report (1999) meted that youth migrants in Africa are three time more in number than migrants the report also added that the urbanization rate of the youth was 32 percent in 1990 compared to less than 25 percent by the year 2015, over 80% of the youths in Africa will be residing in urban areas where job opportunities are limited to few modern sectors and establishment.

          Nelson (1970) observed that the annual rate of urban population growth for the cities in Nigeria was 13.5% there is every reason to expect five times higher since then.

          Umuahia metropolis is a fast growing city in term of population growth rate. Its population grew from less than 20,000 residents in 1991 to estimated excess over a million at present. (Echebiri 2005) the tremendous with many youth, a proportion of the population of Umuahia metropolis was contributed by rural urban migration, and most of them came to urban town to work.

          Lawal (1994) observed that the urban employments are mostly youth entering the market for the first time they have received enough education and practical training to provide them with saleable still. Further, he said “these groups do not want to be tanners but desirer to join their relations in urban town, searching for white collar jobs and enjoying amenities of urban life, how the unemployment problem has assumed disturbing proportion partly due to age composition of unemployment in Umuahia. The unemployed are mainly school issues who go to offices, industries and government offices in search of employment, which are not readily in existence.

          Onah (2001) stated “in Nigeria, since the early eighties unemployment has assumed alarming and disturbing dimensions with millions of able-bodied to find placement.

          Urban youth unemployment is an important dimension of the widespread unemployment, which is a major problem facing Nigeria. With demand for labour has been declining resulting in high level of urban youth unemployment (okojie 2003)

          Onah (2001) stated that urban youths unemployment stands for conglomerate of youth s with diverse background, willing and able to work in urban areas, which result in pressures of supply of labour over the demand for labour, this causing jobless, Which make young defined people to engage in casual work and other undisclosed livelihood sources.

          Consequent upon these, the unemployment among other things can lay hands on chose to be doing street trading. One may be tempted to ask, when and where did street trading start in Abia state? The origin of street trading in Abia state? The origin of street trading in Abia state as well as other states in Nigeria dates back to pre-independent time. Tentatively, street trading must have taken off when men initially over come the problem of self-sufficiency, then there was need to dispose his excess produce. Even in the community, which was obviously subsistent it was common for those who had managed to produce over and subsistence quality to exhibit the excess produce in front of their compound for passers-by in settlement who appear far away from the central service point.

          Most street traders in the early days, hawk their goods by carrying them on their heads, move from house to house, street to street, sometimes from village to village, and making public announcement and chanting trade slogan’s. But today such movements have been almost taken over by modern means of transportation. Therefore it was accessibility to customers that gave the commercial impetus but recently many of the street traders found the roadside as convenient places for taking in and off due to transportation facilities.

          Street trading in some societies have become a thing of the past, while in the developing nation like ours, it is common in an organization. This is because it is a formal system or otherwise of consciously co-coordinating activities, which involves at otherwise of persons. It is further excluded from other human relation by asserting that the term “trading” is a situation where the end is economic.

          However, for trade to occur, two people at least must have something of value and ready to affect exchange. In modern societies producer offer to sale different kinds of good and services in exchange for money

          Kotler (1980) specified five conditions that might be satisfied before exchange can occur these are

i.             There must be at least two parties

ii.            Each party must have something that might be of value to the other party.

iii.           Each party must be capable of communication and delivery

iv.           Each parties is free to accept or reject an offer made by the other parties

v.            Each party believes that it is proper to deal with the party or parties in this way. So, the taking place of exchange depends largely on economic activities has been all known as can be grouped into five classes, two identical types are.

a.       A cluster class comprising the central business distributors, the outlying business centers and isolated store cluster,

b.      A string street class comprising the principle business through fare and neighborhood street trading, which has three identifiable factors.

 The first group comprised of population distribution income level and available purchasing power within the urban area, thus, observation show that there was causal relationship between trading urbanization.

          The second of the factors include the pattern of transport and traffic with cities as the directional flow of traffic. The third group related to the characteristics of potential competitions, essential to an understanding of how the factors underline the size and distribution of models, namely, the range of goods and services and the (Umuahia metropolis inclusive) are experiencing a type of trading, which cannot be classifial sufficiently in any of the categories above.

          Hawking has been a old time thing with us. It has gained momentum to the extent of becoming a social nuisance and health risk. It has gone out from traditional setting of usually portable items along the street to harassment of passengers and car, corner during traffic jams even at traffic calming in urban town, such as Umuahia metrophs. It also embraces the displaying of contraband goods for sales at road junction and other unauthorized locations; street trading is practiced to the extent that “mobile stores and wheel bonus are employed to facilitate it. Even, age and set not barriers to street trading

          Hence, an investigation is carried out in this study to find out the marketing implication of street trading in urban centres of Abia state using Umuahia metropolis as a case study.

1.2         STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEMS

The world over, street trading remains one of the forms of retail business. Many homes especially in the developing countries have it as their major source of income. In Nigeria, the story is different, street trading has become another thing among Nigerians. The ugly situation is that innocent young girls and boys cut across all our social life. Many innocent young girls and boys (especially girls) have in one way or the other suffered from one hazard or the other as a result of street trading. Street trading has resulted in insanity, in most cases. A female hawkers are being raped by some bad boys. Also, the case of kidnapping is a usual among hawkers.

1.3         PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

Purpose of the study is

1.            Finding out the underlying force of street trading

2.            Finding the marketing implication of street trading

3.            Revealing the classes of the society that prefer patronization to super markets and conventional market.

4.            Finding out the problem of street trading in the society

5.            Finding out the quality of goods the street traders sell

6.            Finding if street traders facilitate the time utility of the products needed by the consumer

7.            Finding out if the street traders contribute in the promotion of manufacturers products

8.            Finding whether street trader exchange goods at cheaper rate when compared with other form of market.

9.            Given useful recommendation and suggestion that will go a long way in helping propounding lasting solution to the problems from street trading.

1.4         RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The following questions are answered by this study

1.            Does street trading encourage the sale of goods quality products?

2.            Does street traders sell goods cheaper than those in other market place

3.            Does the street traders make goods available to consumers at the right place;

4.            Streets traders create product awareness

1.5         RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS

The following form the hypothesis for this research

Ho:    street trading does not encourage the sale of good quality product

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