as demand rises

Retailers of Ghana flag-branded and Ghana 2008 paraphernalia should be pretty much excited about the continuous success of Ghana?s Blackstars in the on-going tournament, as the excitement generated by the tournament would continue to bring a considerable measure of demand for the items.

As at last Wednesday, many of the dealers had adjusted the prices of the items due to the high demand. Prices of items such as Tees, flags for vehicles, head gears, wigs, flags, horns and other related items on sale have all been increased.

For example, a Tee that previously sold between Gh?15 and Gh?25 is now selling at between Gh?18 and Gh?28.

The prices are higher on the much fancied Osu Oxford Street in Accra. A polo shirt which previously sold for Gh?20 is now Gh? 32.

?The prices are not dictated by us,? a gentleman in one of the wooden structures where loads of Ghana 2008 items have taken over every inch of space told the dailyEXPRESS.

He added that they have added just a little to the price to make profit he considered as marginal. His sentiments were shared by a number of traders dealing in similar items.

Christopher Ayenini who has pitched camp at the entrance of the Osu food Court where he sells his items had previously told the dailyEXPRESS that sales was not been encouraging. When the paper spoke to him again on Tuesday he had a different story all together.

?The demand has really increased as you can see,? he said with a smile. ?The prices are what people complain about but they still go ahead go buy them.?

He said Ghanaians are generally last minute buyers but once the country?s performance in the tournament picks up people will still come out of their way to buy the items. Mr. Ayenini was however worried about the negative impact the prices could have on sales.

?I don?t? think any increase will push people to come out and buy in large quantities? he said. ?If care is not taken you?ll have a situation where only a handful of people will buy and the rest will be at a huge cost to us all.?

The prices in the maddening traffic jams are no where different from the stationary stalls littered around streets corners. Busy young men and women with different items strapped on their bodies could be seen bringing their mobile selling joints close to either a private car or public bus stop.

?The prices on the items are fixed and nothing could be done about them,? one lady told the dailyEXPRESS.