A
hawker is a salesperson (seller, vendor, supplier etc) of a product(s) or
manufactured goods that can be easily transported (moved from one place to
another) either by foot, wheel barrow, bicycle, tricycles or other automobiles;
the word hawker is generally identical with costermonger or peddler. In majority
places where the term is used, a hawker sells items or locally produced food
that are native to that area. Whether stationary or mobile, hawkers often market
their products by loud street cries or chants, just to attract the attention of
customers and improve sales. They sometimes accompany their chants with a demonstration
and/or detailed explanation of the product; because of this fact, the hawker is
sometimes referred to as a pitchman or demonstrator.
In
Nigeria, hawkers are called different names depending on the product or method
transportation. They are often seen along expressways, motor parks, local
markets and busy junctions selling products like sachet water (popularly known
as pure water), newspapers, groundnut, snack (gala, sausages, egg roll, meat
pie chin-chin etc), fried snails, prawn, sugar cane, banana, plantain chip,
bread, boiled or roasted corn, etc. They are also found selling their products
in open parties/ceremonies like in weddings, birthdays, churches, mosque, games
fields, street shows etc.
In
outsized cities across America, hawkers are usually known as street vendors,
who sell eatable things like popcorn, cotton candy, peanuts, beverages, and ice
cream, along with non-eatable things, like jewelry, clothes, books, and
paintings. Hawkers are also seen selling a variety of things to fans/supporters
at a sports venue; usually, this individual is simply referred to as a stadium
vendor. In Los Angeles, New York, and other major cities, Hawkers distribute
free Newspapers such as AM New York, and Metro etc.
Other
countries like the Caribbean, hawkers are usually referred to as higglers or
informal commercial importers. They sell items in small roadside stands, public
transit hubs, or other places where consumers would want items such as snacks,
cigarettes, phone cards, or other less costly items. Higglers often break
larger items into small individual consumable portions for re-sale and use.
Buying these things from more traditional vendors, farmers, or merchants for
re-sale through their familiar network in communities
Hawkers
are very common in many countries in Asia because of the population size and
traditionally prepared food items or non-edible items too.
The
Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, India says that according to
their records, there are 10 million street vendors in India, with Mumbai
accounting for 250,000; Delhi has 200,000, Kolkata, more than 150,000, and
Ahmedabad, 100,000 respectively. Most of them are not citizens; others are unemployed,
laid-off workers, who decided to work for an average 10–12 hours a day, and
remain bankrupt. Although the established license-permit raj in Indian
bureaucracy ended for most retailing in the 1990s, it continues in this trade.
Inappropriate license ceiling in most cities, like Mumbai which has a ceiling
14,000 licenses, means more vendors hawk their goods illegally, which also
makes their prone to the bribery and extortion culture under local police and
municipal authorities, besides harassment, heavy fines, and sudden evictions.
In Kolkata, the profession was a cognizable and non-bailable offense.
In
ancient times, the street hawkers have organized themselves to have trade
unions and associations, with numerous NGOs as an added advantage to further
strengthen them. In fact, The National Association of Street Vendors of India
(NASVI) based in Delhi, is a federation of 715 street hawker organizations,
trade unions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Kolkata has two such
unions, namely the Bengal Hawkers Association and the Calcutta Hawkers' Men
Union. In September, 2012, long-awaited Street Vendors (Protection of
Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Bill, 2012 was introduced in the
Lok Sabha (Lower of Indian Parliament) aimed to aimed at providing social
security and livelihood rights, and regulated the prevalent license system.
In
the Philippines, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, Balut is a popular dish sold by
hawkers. In both China and Hong Kong, hawkers' inventories often include fish
ball, beef ball, butzaigo, roasted chestnuts, and stinky tofu. In Singapore and
Malaysia, these stands have become so flourishing that many have chosen to set
up shop, stalls and quos more permanently in a Hawker center.
Across
Asia, shops and stalls have been set up with little to no government
monitoring. Due to healthiness concerns and other legal responsibility
problems, the food culture has been seriously challenged in Indonesia, though
without marked achievement. However, in Hong Kong, the lease versus licensed
hawker restrictions has put a burden on this mobile food culture. The term Jau
Gwei (factually: running from ghosts) has been used to describe hawkers often
running away from local police.
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