Merewalesi the mango seller
IN the wee hours of the morning Merewalesi Sigavera makes her way to Suva hoping to sell mangoes on time. The four-hour trip from Nadi begins at 4am on Wednesday; this she said had been a routine during her 15 years as a market vendor.
Originally from Nadi the 50-year-old vends outside the Suva Municipal Market corridor.
Married with four children Ms Sigavera says vending is an interesting job and one of the easiest ways to earn money.
Every year when it’s mango season she says she and other women from her village hire a minibus to Suva to sell mangoes.
“This week only two of us came to sell mangoes and we hired a minibus for $250 one way,” Ms Sigavera said.
Every week she usually brings 10 buckets of mangoes and could earn $600 to take home.
She sells three days a week from Wednesdays to Fridays and returns home on Saturdays.
The decision to move to Suva emerged five years ago after she realised she was not earning enough compared with when she first started.
“This is our bread and butter.
“I don’t have a lot of customers like how it was before and that’s why I moved to Suva so I can support my family and send my five children to school.
“The mangoes are from our mango tree just beside the house.
“We just want some money for stationeries, uniforms, sandals and school bags for next year that’s why we’re out here selling.
Ms Sigavera says her busiest days are Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays where she could serve 30 to 50 customers.
Looking back she said there were times when people looked down on them because of the nature of their work.
“It might be dirty work but it’s a good business and a fast way to make ends meet.
“From my experience, it’s better than any other business.”
She says most of the market vendors that sell there usually sit in the hot sun and sell their produce and did not even have tarpaulin to shelter them from the hot weather.
“We had to bring our umbrella because we had to endure the hot and cold days all for the livelihood of our family.”
Despite the challenges encountered she advises the public to work within their budget and not to focus on the struggle they faced.