Thursday, March 28, 2024 | Ramadan 17, 1445 H
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EDITOR IN CHIEF- ABDULLAH BIN SALIM AL SHUEILI

Spotlight: COVID-19 stigma weighs on used goods dealers

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The fear of contracting COVID-19 is weighing on the used goods sector where many vendors think whether to continue or shut shop. The glut of used goods in the market as many expats leave the country is also taking the sheen off the business.


“My business, and the business of many whom I know in the similar sector, have gone down by at least 70 per cent as people are afraid to buy used furniture which they believe is instrumental in spreading coronavirus,” Radhakrishnan who has been running a used furniture shop in Muttrah told the Observer.


Althaf Hussein, an expatriate who sells used household appliances like air conditioners, fridges and washing machines in Hamriya too is reduced to displaying his products outside the shop in the morning and taking them back by evening.


“These are goods that I bought several months ago and till now, I’m not able to sell them off.”


A scroll over the major used goods online platforms too indicate that goods are either lying there for many weeks or are sold for a song. Panic selling signposts such as ‘expat leaving’, ‘goods as fresh as new’, ‘urgent sale’ are not helping many to dispose of their used goods, be it furniture or household appliances.


“I’m a regular visitor of 2 major sites that facilitate sale of used goods and I can see a large volume of goods continuously promoted either by reducing prices or by advertising in other groups”, Saeed Yousuf said.


“I was able to help one of my friends who was leaving on urgent grounds or dispose of his used goods including beds, ACs and a scar,” says Meeraj Kizhuthani Mahesh, a resident of Muscat.


But experts comment that there is no evidence that coronavirus can be transmitted through used (or new) furniture and the belief otherwise is unfounded, according to Dr Mahmoud al Rahbi of Al Nahdha Hospital.


“There is a low or no risk that the virus can be transmitted from products or packaging to people. There have been no reported cases of the virus being transmitted from imported goods from some country.”


“Simply touching a contaminated surface will not make you sick. The problem starts when you use unwashed hands to eat or scratch your nose or rub your eyes,” says Dr Viresh Chopra. “This is a respiratory virus and it mainly attacks the respiratory system. So, it needs to have contact with a mucus membrane, such as your nose, mouth or eyes.”


 


KABEER YOUSUF


@kabeeryousef


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