From five grams of toothpaste to 10 millilitres of cooking oil, many Nigerians struggling with soaring prices now buy their basic necessities in small quantities packed in tiny plastic bags to be consumed on the same day. Consumer brands behind this "sachetisation of the economy" see it as a creative innovation, allowing consumption for all Nigerians, the majority of whom live on less than $2 a day. But critics see the development as an economic and ecological aberration, even as Africa's largest economy struggles with the inflationary fallout from Russia's war in Ukraine. In the streets of Lagos, the vibrant economic capital of Africa's most populous country, small sachets are now part of the decor: they colour its streets, packing the wood and tin shops found on the corner of most streets. Sitting on a stool, Ibrahim Atahire has been running his small grocery store for 30 years in a busy area of Obalende, a popular district of the megalopolis. "At my place, you can buy … [Read more...] about From coffee to toothpaste, Nigerians buy small as hardships bite
Scantily clad coffee shop
HCM City highlights local cultures to ignite urban tourism
Ho Chi Minh City's Can Gio attractive to tourists (Photo: vntrip.vn) HCM City (VNA) - Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism sector has actively brought its indigenous culture into urban tourism , considering this as one of the strategies to promote the strengths of the city’s destination network. Many districts have continuously launched new tourism products to stimulate the tourism market. The moves have initially impressed local people and helped attract more tourists to the city. Recently, the People's Committee of district 5 launched a programme named "Visiting Cho Lon to Watch the Lion Dance". This programme is implemented on Saturday and Sunday of the 2nd week of each month at The Garden Mall on Hong Bang street. Within the framework of the event, there are also many mobile booths serving food, and introducing local specialties and souvenirs. Similarly, tourism product "Tan Phu - Going is remembering" implemented by the People's Committee of Tan Phu district is attracting … [Read more...] about HCM City highlights local cultures to ignite urban tourism
Giants reshape retail pharmaceutical market
A Long Chau drugstore. The pharmaceutical retail market was seeing the rapid expansion of modern drugstore chains. — Photo FPT Retail The winds of change are blowing through Viet Nam’s retail pharmaceutical industry, with giants wrapping up investments to establish modern retail chains in an anticipated fast-growing market, which mom-and-pop stores currently dominate. After Pharmacity, FPT’s Long Chau, and Mobile World Investment Corp’s An Khang pharmacy chains, Masan Group is supposedly gearing up preparations to enter the pharmaceutical retail market. According to the national portal about business registration, Winphar Trading Services Corporation was founded on March 31 with WinCommerce, holding a stake of 80 per cent, Do Thi Hoang Yen and Tran Phuong Bac, 10 per cent each. WinCommerce, a member of Masan Group, currently operates the most significant nationwide grocery modern trade retail platform Winmart and Winmart+ while Yen and Bac both held important positions at … [Read more...] about Giants reshape retail pharmaceutical market