This article should probably come with a “Heard
Under The Sheds” heading because it arises from a trader discussion in the top
end during the week. A trader has suggested it is time we ended the farce of different
trading hours and at the same time make our hours more related to customer
shopping patterns.
Two ‘O’clock closing on Tuesdays and Thursdays
is out of touch with modern customer expectations and early starts probably
fall in to same category. Our trader was proposing 10:00am to 4:00pm trading
every day for the following reasons –
1.
Standard times for each trading day
just make sense for customers.
2.
There is a growing trend to later
customer attendance.
3.
Extending the hours would
effectively give us 6 more hours of trading (equivalent to one more trading
day) without cost.
As you would expect, not everybody involved in
the discussion agreed with the proposition although most of the negatives
seemed to relate to trader convenience rather than customer convenience. There
could be difficulties for traders. Many attend the market early in the morning
to avoid traffic and appreciate the opportunity to leave early for the same
reason plus they may have kid pickup duties. “I need a life as well” is a
common catchcry and business and family life need to work side by side.
But, debate during the current retail
revolution is all about meeting customer convenience demands and many traders
are suffering reduced income as consumers chase convenience. Re-arranging our schedules
to fit in with customers may just be the price we pay for better business.
There will be much more discussion on this
issue, but as one trader pointed out, this is not something that we have to
wait on renewal approval for. This something we can do right now. And for all
traders looking for immediate action, trading hours may just be an important
vehicle for change.
