Rodent Control
– the Herald-Sun article in Saturday’s paper drew an angry response from
traders in many areas of the market particularly after it was discovered that
the full story had not been told. See seperate article for details.
Oops – Whose
watching the weather watchers? – a small
number of weather measuring stations have been placed under the sheds as the
market gathers information that may assist with renewal plans and climate
control. Measuring temperature and humidity will go a long way to assessing
customer and trader comfort and health needs. Unfortunately the weather station
in K Shed is plugged in to a communal electricity power point and is often
switched off during trading hours. We understand it has not recorded data.
Let’s hope whoever is responsible for its operation
gets it back on stream and contributing useful data for this important aspect
of market trading.
Plugging The
Holes – February can be a quiet
trading month with a number of traders taking leave and creating unsightly gaps
in the aisles. Some traders are well prepared for spreading and fill the gaps
nicely while others make a half-hearted attempt at a larger display and don’t
really improve the look of the market. A number of traders are talking about a
more professional attempt at “curating” the market while others are concerned
at the impact that “curating” may have on valued stall positions. More discussion needed.
Second
Guessing Trading Conditions – in the
previous item we noted that February can be a quiet trading month and yet we
should never underestimate the ability of retailing to surprise us. A number of
traders are reporting good sales from customers visiting Melbourne for the
Bruce Springsteen concerts.
Dual Meaning – speaking of the Bruce Springsteen concerts –
caricaturist, Ivano, was completing a drawing for a couple of Springsteen fans
and he had drawn T-shirts on each of their bodies which required a caption. On
the males T-shirt he wrote “Bruce Springsteen Melbourne 2017” and on the female
shirt he simply wrote “The Boss”. She was very pleased.