BY KATIE AIZON
Journal Staff
For convenience store business owners, typhoons pose challenges affecting operations including property damage, inventory losses, and having to open for shorter business hours due to power outages.
As operating challenges persist due to turbulent weather conditions in the region, some mom-and-pop store owners continue to resume regular operating hours among ongoing power restorations, while others operate without power.
In Mangilao, New GCC Mart continues to remain open with no electricity. Owner Alex Kim shared with the Journal that the store had experienced significant inventory losses following Super Typhoon Bavi. “The problem is that after the typhoon we’ve lost a lot of money [and] have a broken generator,” Kim said. He said that after the storm frozen meats and ice cream had to be thrown away equaling up to $12,000 lost in frozen goods.
Furthermore, storefront signage indicating the store's name at the front of the building had been damaged due to storm force winds from the typhoon. According to cashier Eva Rogolifoi, working after a natural disaster has its own set of challenges. “This is my second time working with no power and it’s hot. Also, customers mostly want to use card so now we’re really slow,” she said, saying that while foot traffic into the store has slowed down that increased foot traffic can be observed before typhoons as people prepare purchasing items such as snacks, canned food, and butane.
Over in Barrigada, Ed Store owner Edward Lee shared similar sentiments, having also experienced major inventory losses due to power outages.
According to Lee, the estimated loss of frozen products including poultry, meats, and desserts equals to about $8,000 to $10,000, taking into account previous inventory remaining from Super Typhoon Sinlaku as electricity was restored a day after and Lee was able to resume business regularly. Currently operating on island power as of July 8, Lee stated how the business had resumed operations after the storm.
“We didn’t have [a] generator. We opened but we couldn’t sell frozen meats and the drinks were warm so we had to put ice in a cooler and sell them that way,” he said, sharing how the business had to adapt to operating without electricity. Other businesses around the island experienced less strain on operations, such as Loco Mart/Hobbies in Macheche, Dededo.
Local Mart/Hobbies owner, who preferred to be called “Von”, shared that the store was able to maintain nearly regular operations due to the convenience store being a smaller part of a primarily hobbies shop, selling collectibles from Pokémon cards to RC cars, and having maintained power through most of the typhoon and after. He shared that losses had been minor compared to other establishments, only losing ice cream products because of power fluctuations. “We don’t have any damage but the impact has been the credit card machine,” he said, explaining that the machine had already been down for a few days. Additionally, he noted another difference felt by the establishment after the typhoon has also been slower foot traffic as competing businesses continue to open up in the area. mbj
Journal Staff
For convenience store business owners, typhoons pose challenges affecting operations including property damage, inventory losses, and having to open for shorter business hours due to power outages.
As operating challenges persist due to turbulent weather conditions in the region, some mom-and-pop store owners continue to resume regular operating hours among ongoing power restorations, while others operate without power.
In Mangilao, New GCC Mart continues to remain open with no electricity. Owner Alex Kim shared with the Journal that the store had experienced significant inventory losses following Super Typhoon Bavi. “The problem is that after the typhoon we’ve lost a lot of money [and] have a broken generator,” Kim said. He said that after the storm frozen meats and ice cream had to be thrown away equaling up to $12,000 lost in frozen goods.
Furthermore, storefront signage indicating the store's name at the front of the building had been damaged due to storm force winds from the typhoon. According to cashier Eva Rogolifoi, working after a natural disaster has its own set of challenges. “This is my second time working with no power and it’s hot. Also, customers mostly want to use card so now we’re really slow,” she said, saying that while foot traffic into the store has slowed down that increased foot traffic can be observed before typhoons as people prepare purchasing items such as snacks, canned food, and butane.
Over in Barrigada, Ed Store owner Edward Lee shared similar sentiments, having also experienced major inventory losses due to power outages.
According to Lee, the estimated loss of frozen products including poultry, meats, and desserts equals to about $8,000 to $10,000, taking into account previous inventory remaining from Super Typhoon Sinlaku as electricity was restored a day after and Lee was able to resume business regularly. Currently operating on island power as of July 8, Lee stated how the business had resumed operations after the storm.
“We didn’t have [a] generator. We opened but we couldn’t sell frozen meats and the drinks were warm so we had to put ice in a cooler and sell them that way,” he said, sharing how the business had to adapt to operating without electricity. Other businesses around the island experienced less strain on operations, such as Loco Mart/Hobbies in Macheche, Dededo.
Local Mart/Hobbies owner, who preferred to be called “Von”, shared that the store was able to maintain nearly regular operations due to the convenience store being a smaller part of a primarily hobbies shop, selling collectibles from Pokémon cards to RC cars, and having maintained power through most of the typhoon and after. He shared that losses had been minor compared to other establishments, only losing ice cream products because of power fluctuations. “We don’t have any damage but the impact has been the credit card machine,” he said, explaining that the machine had already been down for a few days. Additionally, he noted another difference felt by the establishment after the typhoon has also been slower foot traffic as competing businesses continue to open up in the area. mbj
