The event consisted of a wide range of products including housewares, jewelry, small electronics, various gadgets, and unique items, many of which are referred to as “as seen on TV” products.

The event was run by South American Vafiponce Trading Company with a local Bahamian company, Bahamian Supreme Trading Company, representing the plans locally. The events were advertised through newspaper ads, extended infomercials on local TV stations, street banners and live radio remote broadcasts.

As a licensed small business owner, employer and resident of the Bahamas, we reflected on such an event and wondered how this impacts our consumer market, retail outlets and other employers.

Certainly consumers were given opportunities to see and purchase items that may not be otherwise found locally, and the overall thrust of the promotions – particularly the TV-based ones – was that the prices were low, and good deals could be found.

But we wondered: was this group licensed for retail sales of these goods? And could this kind of thing actually hurt local businesses and even consumers?

We talked with two major local general retailers, who asked to remain anonymous, to get an insight into what impact this could have. One might expect that an established local retailer would not be too happy about someone infringing on their market, and this proved to be true. But there was a deeper message than simple defensiveness and protectionism.

One retailer who visited the trade show said it resembled a ‘traveling flea market’, but actually did not fault the organisers or the operators for doing such a thing. The retailer went on to say that they welcome fair competition, even from events such as this. But, they said, competition can only be fair when the same rules and requirements are placed on all of those in a particular area of business. Bahamians and foreigners must be held to the same standard and the same checks; Bahamians must not be disadvantaged.

They claimed to have done some checking and found that no license had been given by the Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) for the Freeport event (all businesses operating in the city of Freeport are required to be licensed by the GBPA). The retailer also said that, if a foreign group is permitted to come into this market without paying license fees, work permits, insurances, and complete import duties on goods, then why should a Bahamian be forced to do so?

In an interview with local press, show organiser Pedro Roberts said that the products that were made available are manufactured in Venezuela, Columbia and Peru and do not compete with the local market because they are “one of a kind”.

“Most of these products that the show has cannot be found anywhere else so we do not clash with the local market but enhance it,” Roberts said.

We asked the local retailer that attended the event if this was in fact the case. They said that they observed pots, pans, garden hoses and common jewelry items for sale, and that all of the products they saw were in fact offered for sale by Bahamian companies.

Asked if the prices offered were significantly below local retail prices, one Bahamian retailer said they were told by a local consumer that a similar garden hose that sold at the trade show for $34 was available at a local shop for exactly half — $17. While there were likely savings to be had, you would have been wrong to assume that all deals were good deals.

We were told that there were several items on display that were purported to be a specific brand when in fact the actual product being sold was a no-name brand of apparent inferior quality. As an example, a prominent sign above one display showed the ‘Little Giant’ brand of ladder along with an image of Hal Wing, the personality that appears in the ‘Little Giant’ TV ads. The ladders actually available for sale were not the genuine article.

One Bahamian retailer told us that they received a phone call from one of their regular customers, irate that they (the retailer) would “allow” such an event to happen. The retailer explained that they had no control or influence over such a thing, but that the government and local licensing authorities are the ones that either permit or deny such things.

Bahamian law prohibits foreigners from the unlicensed direct cash sale of items to local consumers, however, from all available information this appears to be precisely what occurred.

In the days when families are struggling to make every dollar count, is such an event really a bad thing? Does it really matter?

We believe it does. In recent weeks, staff of local retailers have been laid off due to slowing business volume. Companies, just like individuals, are scraping for every income opportunity, trying to cut costs, and stay afloat. Consumers also need to be protected from faulty merchandise and must have the basic options for recourse when a product fails.

Traveling bands hawking goods one day and gone the next offer no warranty, no support and no remedy to problems or even questions that can arise. When a ladder fails a week after purchase from a transient salesman, where does one go for a refund or replacement? You’re plain out of luck. But if the same thing happens after that item has been purchased from a local retailer you better believe we’ll be back there looking for money back or a brand new substitute. And so we should.

We are all for a free market economy, but it just doesn’t make sense to allow fleeting traders to compete for our jobs, our incomes and even our safety. Foreigners that come to the Bahamas must adhere to our laws, meet their obligations and act fairly to our people.

If this is not the case, then local retailers should fire their staff, shut their doors, rent a warehouse, and sell from the back door whenever they need a little cash. Why go through all the bother of licensing, insurances, leasehold improvements, and the many other overhead costs when you can sidestep all that and just do as you please?

If we do not enforce our laws and be more mindful of how we may actually be hurting ourselves, then you can believe that harder times are in our future.

~ejr~