While school holidays might present an opportunity for most students to relax, they have always posed a threat for most retail businesses on the Bult.
The businesses are most affected during the June and December holidays as they are longer, resulting in a decline in the number of regular customers.
Franchises like Spar, OK Foods, Wimpy, KFC, Chicken Licken and Steers have come up with ways to navigate these difficult times. Even so, Henk Vosloo (58), the co-owner of Spar, says that throughout the 20 years of its existence, Spar has had to cut back on ordering new stock due to low demand during these longer school holidays. He added that Spar’s turnover percentages drop by a staggering 15–20 per cent, although expenses like water and electricity remain the same.
Wimpy, which is known to be a 24-hour restaurant, has had to adjust its operations due to the month-long holidays. Noluthando Jeanette Duma (43) and Neo Motsoanageng (37) who are both managers at Wimpy say they only operate for 24 hours during the week and close at 02:00 or 03:00 over weekends. This has resulted in workers working fewer hours and losing at least two shifts on average.
The Steers manager, Innocenctia Abrams (27) has the same predicament. She says the previous owner of the restaurant used to close during the holidays but the new owner has a different strategy. He has instructed them to promote specials during the holidays, due to a change in clientele. According to Steers, they have had to adapt several times during this holiday period, like closing earlier than the usual 22:00.
Die Akker owner, Bertus Els (39) estimates that although students comprise about 30 per cent of his clients, Die Akker can survive the holiday period, thanks to sports events that take place in Potchefstroom. Although this might seem to be a win-win situation, the restaurant still experiences a loss during late afternoons and evenings. These are regarded as peak times during normal school terms. They have also had to adjust working hours according to the business available.
