Mobile Traders: Where And When?

Many of us have stopped at road-side stalls to buy items on offer,  especially seasonal produce in bulk supply. Think flowers, avocados and asparagus. Often these are spur of the moment decisions as opposed to a planned shopping trip.  An aspect of them being in the right place at the right time.

Itinerant traders or hawkers are a part of many communities, most often selling perishable goods out of a truck or similar vehicle.  These range from fruit and vegetables to flowers and fresh fish. In Rotorua the Council has allocated specific sites and an annual fee is payable for a license to operate. While the numbers are small, the Council has stipulations based on a number of issues about safety, speed of traffic and parking for example.

This can become a problem when a local rate-paying business notices that  a nearby mobile shop is in direct competition with them and is in effect able to undercut them due to fewer overheads.

This issue raises many questions for our community around how we define a mobile trader.  Is someone parking Monday to Friday 9-5 am itinerant, or are they taking unfair advantage of a policy that gives them access to a market without paying the usual business expenses of rent, wages and rates?

It is clear to me that margins are tight in retail and businesses are under constant pressure to make ends meet. I believe it is important that our policies support and protect our business ratepayers.

A review of this policy will be underway soon and I welcome your feedback on this issue.