The Economics of Niamey

I had a chance to observe the Grand Marche (the big market) a couple of days ago as I tagged along with Barb when she was shopping for backing for new curtains.  The Marche was quite an experience and really impressive.  As you walk down the narrow hallway (4 ft) about every six or eight feet there is a new “merchant”, on both sides.  They hang their wares in high rows because the stalls aren’t very deep.  As a result, the sun can’t get through so the hallways are rather dark and shaded.  Not letting the sun in helps keep the heat down.  So it is a trade off between light and heat.

Where we started was the men’s clothing section.  There are no signs to tell you this but you could tell from the merchandise in the stalls.  Each stall had one person in it.  Some were alert, some were sleeping, some were getting ready for prayers by washing their feet in the hallway, and some were chatting with their neighbor.  Each person would say the same things about their merchandise as the person next to them, not much, just that it was the best.  As you walked down the hallway, you would see the same basic merchandise in stall after stall.  Maybe the shirts would go from 5 stalls of short sleeve button in the front shirts, to 5 stalls of a mix, to 5 stalls of golf shirts, etc.  But much of the clothing was the same.  We walked a long way down one hallway and then turned to go back on another.  I was told we only scratched the surface of the Marche.  There had to be thousands of stalls and thousands of individual merchants.

Then on the streets leading to the Marche there were stalls, carts, and people selling much of the same stuff.  If you were selling shoes, your shoes looked like everyone else’s shoes.  If you were selling SIM cards, and there were many who did, your SIM cards were just like everyone else’s. 

Across the street from the Marche at one point were at least two blocks of vender stalls that were selling cotton material.  Each stall had rolls and rolls of material lined up around it.  At one point we walked between the stalls, away from the street, and behind the stalls was a whole other level of stalls and behind them was another, four or five deep.  All selling cotton material.

Then we went to a “store” that was selling cotton material.  It was jammed with rolls of pretty much the same material as we saw in the stalls.  The store was hot and musty.

Finally, we went to a new store that had just been built and it carried Bed, Bath, and Beyond like products.  It was air conditioned, had big aisles, and away from the busy streets.  It was empty.  I was told only NGOs shop there because the locals don’t use many of the products they sell and because the locals don’t have the money.

My reaction to all of this is that it is entrepreneurial capitalism of the first order.  Everyone is his own businessman.  There are no corporations.  No franchises.  It doesn’t appear that any two people are working together.  The thing that is missing is any concept of marketing.  The ones that come closest to having any marketing are the beggars who drag along their crippled sister or blind mother to get sympathy money.  No one is selling products that are better or different than someone else.  The only visible differentiation is in the haggling over the price.

I am sure new products get introduced into this system but I have yet to see any reference to “new” anything.  In fact, there is no reference to any thing: there are no signs of any kind.  Can you believe a world without advertising?  It is beyond my comprehension.

If I compare Niamey economics to American economics I see one major difference.  Niamey has capitalism, that is an economic system in which the means of production are privately owned and operated for profit in a competitive environment, and it has aggressive entrepreneurs just like in the US.  Niamey has some of the elements of marketing, like personal sales, distribution, and promotional pricing like we have in the US.  Yet the economics of Niamey aren’t nearly as successful and orderly as in the US.  Why?  What is lacking is advertising.  Advertising is what made/makes America great.  If you can’t communicate the distinguishing features of your products or services from someone else your entrepreneurial drive and competitiveness goes out the window. 

I always suspected this.  Just thought you’d like to know.