Some traders have extended their festive break due to the rainy season. — Filepic
SOME mobile market traders in Johor Baru are taking advantage of the rainy season to extend their lunar new year holidays, according to the South Johor Hawkers and Petty Traders Association.
Its chairman Datuk Yow Boon Choon said some traders were slow to resume business after the week-long break which started on Chinese New Year eve.
“The morning and night markets temporarily ceased operations for the Chinese New Year celebrations and many businesses have started again in the second week of the festive season.
“However, some traders have opted to extend their holidays due to weather conditions, which has also affected the overall traffic volume at markets in general.
“This is not a cause for concern because generally, business will drop after the festive season as consumers have done all their shopping prior to the celebrations.
“I am thankful the rainy weather occurred during the Chinese New Year holidays and not earlier when shoppers were busy with their preparations.
“Otherwise, business would have been affected,” he said.
Some of the night markets under the association are Taman Century, Taman Ungku Mohsin, Taman Ehsan Jaya, Taman Puteri Wangsa, Taman Munshi Ibrahim, Taman Desa Cemerlang and Taman Pelangi Indah.
The largest night market under the association is Taman Johor Jaya which has about 200 stalls and Taman Pelangi with some 100 stalls.
Yow added that the association did not receive any complaints from the traders regarding the prolonged rainy weather as they were all seasoned operators who could navigate the situation well.
