Recently the Malaysian Bajet 2016 was presented. Normally these things don't interest me, but since working in Kino, and now, having my own business and being an employer, it is important to keep up, especially since after JUST introducing minimum wage a couple of years ago, it is now being INCREASED.
On the whole, I applaude this move because I know we deserve it. But being an employer in the small business retail sector, it presents an extra cost. Right now in sarawak, minimum wage is RM800 for any employee working a minimum of 40 paid hours a week. (Dont listen to other people who says this is just a 'guideline'. It is the rules. These people are just too stingy to pay minimum wage. That's right, I'm calling you stingy for not paying what your staff is owed) Normally people work 9 hours a day, 1 hour being lunch time so the other 8 hours are their paid hours. This is common for any full-time staff anywhere. I calculate OT and base part-timer's wage from this too.
Now, starting from June 2016, the minimum wage in Sarawak is raised from RM800 to RM920. And the next time it is raised, I am sure, will be to RM1000. Because in Peninsular Malaysia min wage is RM900, and is being raised to RM1000 next year. I have two butiks, and two staffs. I pay them both minimum wage and our sales barely cover our expenses. I can safely say, next year, we will not be able to afford a full time staff for our second butik because it will cut very deeply into profitability. Most probably we will hire a long-term parttime staff instead. At least until we get to point where we are comfortable to pay two fulltimers.
But for how long?
I dont think this style of doing business is sufficient anymore. The only constant thing is change. We have to re-think the way we do business. Re-think how we view the market, the customers, their needs and wants, their priorities. And at the same time, allign them to our own self-preservation and profitability.
There must be a balance somewhere.
Recently I heard some troubling news.
When I met my materials supplier in KL, at Jalan TAR, they asked me how business was during Raya season. I told them business was great. We almost doubled our sales from the previous year. He said that's very good, because business was bad for a lot of Jalan TAR sellers. Some of them couldn't even cover their costs. I was shocked. This is Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman. MASJID INDIA TERRITORY.This is THE place to shop for raya, every other sellers in Malaysia get their stocks from this place, yet they themselves couldnt cover costs? It was shocking.
He said GST was a big reason and causes people to have less money to spend on luxury things. Even during the season I noticed how, if they have a family event coming soon after raya, like a relative's wedding, they would try to buy clothes that coincides with the theme color of the wedding, as opposed to last year when people wouldnt think too much over buying two outfits. Although really, how often would you wear that fancy jubah or fancy kurung the rest of the year anyway?
This is not an isolated case. My tailor also told me that business was slow after raya, ini anticipation of the Raya Haji season. He said if it wasn't for some big orders from Brunei, it would be quite bad for him too.
So clearly, the market is changing. It changes every year. I'm not just talking about fashion styles, I'm talking about the consumers themselves. In fact, I dont think it is an annual change. It is a monthly and seasonal change. And they dont revert back to their previous state.
As a retailer and as a business person, some big changes in thinking is required here. A complete paradigm shift.
In the mean time, here are some links for the Bajet 2016. I find them easiest to understand in these websites.
http://www.mysumber.com/ringkasan-intipati-kandungan-bajet-2016-belanjawan.html
https://www.malaysiakini.com/news/316903
http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/bahasa/article/najib-bentang-bajet-2016-di-dewan-rakyat
http://www.amenoworld.net/2015/10/bajet-2016-pemotongan-subsidi.html
No comments:
Post a Comment