Customers at the Souq Al Haraj.
Despite the downswing in business and the popularity of social networking sites providing alternative platforms for sales of secondhand goods, the 'flea market' Souq Al Haraj is still attracting a good number of customers.
Being a one-stop-Souq for anything and everything, it’s divided into different sections roughly clustered together. There’s an area of clothing shops then another lane of little huts filled mainly with piles of textiles and curtain rods.
The usual bustle, which was witnessed at the market only a few years ago for the presence of a large number of customers, is missing thanks to social networking sites and social media which are claiming most of their business. The souq stands today as a market full of shops and staff but without customers and huge amount of products. If a customer by chance enters the market, the staffers of the shops rush to him luring him to buy their products in every possible way and leaving him confused in turn.
However, it was not like that some years ago. The market located in the heart of the city and being an ideal destination for “cheap shopping” would witness intense activity of buyers and sellers throughout the day.
“I pay QR11,000 rent for this shop. Accommodation rent is also touching sky. Moreover I pay my salesmen monthly. The rent of the shop increases 10% every year. Due to slump in sales we face difficulties at the end of the month but we still manage to prevail along these difficulties. In 2014, customers would throng the shop all the day long. With the advent of social media, we have lost all our regular customers,” Khurshed Alam, owner of Al-Gharib second-hand store told The Peninsula.
He further said: “Due to sluggish sales, our sponsor does not give us an opportunity to bring our family to Doha. Living without family and struggling is not an easy job but we do it.”
Muhammad Ilyas, a customer at the second-hand furniture shop said : “I usually come here on Fridays and Saturdays. The flea markets help us buying clothes and household items at cheap cost. The rent of our accommodation does not allow us to buy brand new electronics, furniture and clothes.”
The vendors at the market say that the name “secondhand market” given by the public for Souq Haraj will vanish shortly.
“Sales worth QR3,000 per day does not help us even pay the rent of our shop. Our local old customers buy sofa and curtains from our shop. We have experienced most dull market in 2016 in past 15 years,” said owner of Al Thamar Trading Store.
