Jingling coins all the way IT’S NO CHILD’S PLAY . . . Coin dealers have invaded most parts of downtown Harare, bringing a world of convenience to commuters and retailers desperate for small change. In this picture combo, the coins are displayed near the flyover along Seke Road and along Kenneth Kaunda Avenue
IT’S NO CHILD’S PLAY . . . Coin dealers have invaded most parts of downtown Harare, bringing a world of convenience to commuters and retailers desperate for small change. In this picture combo, the coins are displayed near the flyover along Seke Road and along Kenneth Kaunda Avenue

IT’S NO CHILD’S PLAY . . . Coin dealers have invaded most parts of downtown Harare, bringing a world of convenience to commuters and retailers desperate for small change. In this picture combo, the coins are displayed near the flyover along Seke Road and along Kenneth Kaunda Avenue

Stanely Mushava Features Correspondent
They might have fallen out of favour with mainstream retailers, but coins are the new fad for downtown hustlers. Harare has lately witnessed a fresh upsurge of the coin venture, with scores of rand-denominated coin dealers scrambling to busy termini every morning to trade in loose change.

The clinking and jingling at the new sidewalk markets may be attributed to the enterprising nature of Harare hustlers who are out to squeeze profit from just about every street narrative.

After all, with fake notes occasionally in circulation, coins are relatively safe from counterfeiters and sidewalk dealers are determined not to let them slip away without a few spins.

Simon Vengai Muzenda (Fourth Street) Terminus, Copacabana and the drop-off point adjacent to the Seke Road flyover and several streets, notably traffic lights at the intersection of Chinhoyi Street and Jason Moyo Avenue, have particularly become strongholds for the coin dealers.

The dealers can be seen a considerable stretch from the flyover up to the threshold of the central business district along Seke Road, flaunting wads of bank notes in one hand and jingling coins in the other.

When a kombi pulls into the roadside to drop passengers, the coin dealers out-scramble each other to offer change in smaller denominations and at least R10 for US$1 per transaction.

With the rand trading at 13.30 per $1, the dealers are assured close to a dollar for every three transactions, a reasonable pace of profit in a generally slow economy.

Saul Badza (23), who works as a conductor for a City-Zengeza commuter omnibus, said they need to be supplied with coins by the dealers because they charge R5 during slower business hours, hence their need for loose change.

“We normally charge $1 during peak hours, but we revert to R5 during the greater part of the day. Some passengers board with huge denominations so we lose change to break that down,” Badza said.

The conductor said it is possible that coin dealers are cashing in on the cross-rate margin, but the main concern from the kombis’ end was getting change for their convenience and that of their passengers.

“We do not deal with the coin guys using the foreign exchange rate. It is just $1 for R10 and that works for us because we operate a busy trade,” he said.

The coin business used to be a niche venture for children assigned by incognito agencies in the CBD, but has since been taken over by older dealers who are more aggressive.

Around 40 coin dealers descend on the flyover radius along Seke Road every day to pan the most out of this sidewalk goldmine.

Coin dealers who spoke to Herald Features, however, insisted that they were not motivated by the cross-rate margin to change coins but it was a convenient way to dispose of excess coins when placing orders for their tuck-shops.

“Most people whom you see here are vendors and tuck-shop owners. They mostly sell small items in coins but at the end of the day they have to restock so they need solid denominations,” said Mapiye Kageta (41).

Kageta operates a tuck-shop in St Mary’s, Chitungwiza, and cannot shun coins since the commodities which sell faster cost less than $1.

He said his wife and relatives take turns at the tuck-shop during the day while he changes the available revenue to bigger denominations.

The recent depreciation of the rand against the US dollar has prompted its rejection by an increasing number of shop owners, with some only accepting locally minted bond coins.

Kageta said bond coins seem to be out-circulated by rands, therefore smaller trades like his have no choice but to remain mainly rand-denominated.

“The challenge then comes when we have to restock. For example, Mohamed Musa Wholesalers do not accept more than $3 worth of coins, yet we mostly receive coins from customers,” Kageta said.

“The same goes for our colleagues, here, the vendors. They sell apples, bananas, sweets, biscuits, painkillers and drinks, and each of those normally costs R5 or less. At the end of the day, they have lots of coins which are not accepted at the Matanuska Wholesale,” he said.

Brian Vhiyazhe (24) also operates a tuck-shop in St Mary’s and doubles up as a coin dealer along Seke Road.

Vhiyazhe said there is no way small retail business can join the crusade against coins because coins accounted for the larger part of their sales.

“Yes, there are many people who can afford to buy grocery for the whole month in town but people who buy from us usually buy in small quantities since money is no longer circulating as much as it used to,” Vhiyazhe said.

In fact, the tuck-shops have to break down and repackage their wares to suit their customers’ diminishing buying power. This guarantees the sustained use of coins, notwithstanding the recent depreciation of the rand.

“There is no way we can stop selling in coins because some families do not afford the conventional pricing. For example, we sell R5 for a cup of sugar, 5R for a sachet of milk powder, R1 for an egg and the R5 for the ‘high-roof’ loaf of bread. This means someone who is not paid on regular basis can afford decent breakfast for their family,” Vhiyazhe said.

Vhiyazhe added the customised packages worked well for the tuck-shop owners and demand had been increasing lately.

While it might be adapted to spending patterns in high-density areas, the packages apparently translate to even greater profit for the tuck-shop owners.

“However, we are always coming back to our problem with wholesalers at the end of the day. We need bigger denominations and the kombi guys who also need coins come in handy,” he said.

Vhiyazhe said he wakes up early in the morning to make the most out of the venture but cannot come earlier that 6 am for fear of being mugged by unruly youngsters who sleep around the area.

Matthew Mlambo (28) from Seke, known to his flyover peers as Tsano Mateo, has been vending by the robots since he was a young boy.

“I have sold all sorts of items since but I am currently selling bottled water because it works for this kind of weather.

“For me to exchange coins with kombis is easy because I sell water to passengers in the kombi.

“The water costs R5, so I have to be getting bigger denominations for my orders at the same time because the wholesalers have been refusing coins lately,” he said.

Fluctuating exchange rates may have brought the rand tumbling, heads-down, tails-up, but Harare hustlers are laughing all the way to the bank.

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