Firecracker vendors hope sales will pick up as New Year draws near

Firecracker vendors are hoping that their sales will pick up in the next couple of days leading to the New Year. | Futch Anthony Inso

LAPU-LAPU CITY, Philippines — Four days before the New Year, firecracker vendors in Lapu-Lapu City are hoping that customers will flock to their stores and that their sales will increase.

Abbeygail Lara, a firecracker vendor in Barangay Canjulao, admitted that there had been fewer buyers of firecrackers this year during Christmas as compared to last year.

She said that last year, they even had customers coming from outside Cebu province.

But due to the pandemic, Lara said their customers were not able to travel to buy firecrackers from them.

“Dili man sila makaanhi kay layo man pod kaayo, unya ang uban lockdown. Among mga sales moabot gyud na sa Negros, Dumaguete, ug Bohol. Anhi gyud na sila mangumpra,” Lara said.

(They cannot come here because they live far from here while the others are on lockdown. Our sales will reach Negros, Dumaguete and Bohol. This is where they buy their firecrackers.)

Due to this, Lara said that she is hopeful that starting tomorrow, December 29, 2020, to Thursday, December 31, 2020, people will still buy firecrackers and fireworks that they can use in welcoming the New Year.

“So sa karon, dili pa kaayo halin no, pero ining (December) 29 to 31, murag daghan nag halin. Daghan na’g manganhi ba,” she added.

(So today, our sales are still slow but from (December) 29 to 31, I think our sales will increase. Many will come here to buy.)

Lara said that their cheapest firecrackers are only worth P2.50, while their most expensive fireworks are around P5,000 per piece./dbs