Which Is Better Commercially, Renting A Shop Or Owning A Mobile Grocery?

The outbreak of the Covid-19 virus which was declared a pandemic has almost brought businesses to a standstill and has affected most of the shops, and the activities of ‘mobile groceries’ without exception, which have been decimated by the repeated closures, partly due to lack of direct government support to compensate for the losses they incurred.

In the midst of all this, according to a survey conducted by Al-Qabas on Twitter, which included 671 male and female citizens, it was found that about 42% prefer renting a shop than owning of mobile grocery to start their business, compared to 34.3% who believe that owning the latter is better for them in terms of investment, while are 23.7% said it did not really matter what type of business they opt for – mobile grocery or renting a shop.

A member of the Federation of Mobile Vehicles, Dari Abdullah Al-Hajri, said renting a shop at the present time is much better than owning a mobile grocery, due to the scarcity of licensed locations, most of which are located in undesirable areas that do not meet the aspirations of their owners.

Al-Hajri indicated there are more than 3,000 licenses have been issued for mobile groceries distributed over 300 locations in different regions of the country, pointing out that the daily profits for one cart from sales range between 5 and 20 dinars only, bringing the monthly total between 150 and 600 dinars maximum, and it may increase or decrease a little bit depending on the business and the location assigned to it, but by all means this is a small revenue when compared to a small shop in any area of ​​the country.

Al-Hajri added the cost of equipping the vehicle is between 8,000 and 25 thousand dinars, including the cost of the vehicle, cooling devices, gas pipes, and a power generator, which has to be specific specifications, and its price may reach 3,000 dinars (depending on the size). He pointed out that the equipment of food trucks is considered the most expensive.

Al-Hajri explained that among the reasons that many Kuwaitis are reluctant to own mobile groceries and opt to rent shops are the exaggerated requirements the competent authorities demand, in addition to the strict supervision by 6 government agencies — the Ministry of Commerce, Kuwait Municipality, Public Authority for Food and Nutrition, Ministry of Interior, and the General Fire Department — unlike the shops.

On the other hand, a real estate source said doing business in a commercial store is more profitable than “mobile groceries,” but despite that, investing in a rented commercial store remains like any other activity that requires several factors in order to achieve its success.

The source said despite the advantages of the shops, the challenges they faced are very similar to the activities related to mobile vehicles during the Corona crisis, as both of them suffered from closure, and the wages of employees and workers accumulated on them.

 

SOURCE  :   TIMES KUWAIT

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