Shanya Gottshalk/ Nicholas Richards, Gleaner Writers
ANTHONY CHANG
THE ISLANDWIDE power outage which lasted from Saturday into Sunday morning hurt some retailers, but many businesses sailed through it with little impact, according to early reports.
The blackout began at 4.15 p.m. on Saturday, causing some businesses to close their doors prematurely. But as it occurred late on the busy shopping day, its commercial impact appears limited.
Hi-Lo supermarket on Old Hope Road in Kingston was one of the businesses affected negatively. Their generator broke down approximately two hours after the blackout started and they were "forced to close early", according to one Hi-Lo official.
Former president of the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce (JCC), Anthony Chang, yesterday said smaller retailers, especially those in the rural areas, suffer more in such circumstances as they are less likely to have their own standby generators.
CAPITAL COST
"Rural businesses do not generate as much revenue as those in the Corporate Area," so they find the capital cost harder to bear, Chang said.
Salon Distributors Limited, which sells beauty products in the Portmore Mall in St. Catherine, had to turn back customers. An employee said they could not access their computerised data needed for business transactions.
But Leacroft Small, store manager at the huge Portmore Megamart store said, "Overall it did not impact negatively on business. It had its advantages also."
He said sales of batteries, rechargeable lamps, and candles soared at his store, which has an independent power supply.
BUSINESS AS USUAL
And it was business as usual at the Sunset Jamaica Grande Resort and Spa in Montego Bay. General Manager Evatt Bloomfield said, "There was no significant impact as there was not a protracted power cut from our stand point ...We had a fairly substantial generator service and we were able to get back electricity by 7:00 p.m."
Carib Cinema in Cross Roads also experienced no problems, because of it has its own backup generator, a spokesman said. Some moviegowers said they were frustrated in their attempt to go to the Carib as every film was sold out on Saturday night with the limited entertainment options caused by the power cut.
