Vendors and customers of the Tap Seac spring craft market told The Macau Post Daily on Saturday that this year’s craft market was not as crowded as last year’s.
Yesterday was the last day of the Tap Seac spring craft market. Leung, a local handmade hat vendor, told The Macau Post Daily on Saturday that compared to last year’s craft market in November, this year’s event had fewer attendees. She said that in November, customers were more “irrational”, adding that they tended to buy “a lot” of things. She pointed out that it might be the result of residents having been deprived of events per se during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.
However, Leung also said that the urge to buy might have died down because the customers during this craft market were “too rational” and did not spend as much. She also underlined that there were a lot of vendors who sold similar items, therefore the competition had increased. She noted that the spring craft market attracted more Putonghua speakers but her customers were mainly Cantonese speakers.
Hong, an accessory vendor from Shenzhen, said this weekend’s craft market was less crowded compared to the week before. However, she also said that compared to the craft market in Shenzhen, the Tap Seac craft market attracted more people.
Hong also told The Macau Post Daily that she was here during the Tap Seac craft market in November, pointing out that she chooses seasonal items every time she comes to Macau.
According to Chan, a local clay container vendor, this was the first time she had had a booth at the Tap Seac craft market. She said that there were more people than she expected, pointing out that a lot of shoppers were “ready to spend some money”. She added that even though not every walker-by would purchase her items they would at least follow her shop on Instagram to keep engaging with her. She noted that 30 percent of her customers were from the mainland.
Meanwhile, Ng, one of the Tap Seac craft market’s local customers, said that she did not go to last year’s market but she felt that this time a wider variety of products was on offer compared to previous years. She said that she appreciates events like this because it provides a platform for local small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to promote and develop their business.
When asked how much she spent at the market, Ng said that she spent around 300 patacas on hats and accessories. Ng pointed out that the products at the market were relatively expensive but she acknowledged that most of the items were handmade, so she still thought they were worth the price.
A female resident checks out a vendor’s social media account at the Tap Seac spring craft market on Saturday. Photo: Prisca Tang
