Like most other African countries, the Ivory Coast is not immune to the current global economic crisis that has heavily impacted on the lives of many, forcing them to change their shopping habits.

By Selay Marius Kouassi, Abidjan 

As we come to the end of the 2011 festive season, the Kouté market for second-hand clothes, in Yopugon, southwest of Abidjan, is swarming with people. The cars parked on the open area adjacent to the marketplace indicate the social status of their owners, who are looking for affordable clothes and shoes for the end of year celebrations.

“Our customers are usually people with small budgets. But this year things are different, we have more and more ‘groto’ (people who are well-off financially) among our customers. They have ‘fallen’ (become broke)”, sarcastically says Donkor Appiah, who has been selling European second-hand jeans at the Kouté market for almost ten years.

C. A, a woman in her forties and of high social status judging by her expensive jewellery, did not wear any gloves before sorting through the bundles of used clothes. She was sweating heavily and almost fell to the ground on more than one occasion. She was clearly not used to this type of market, where those who know how to search ‘dig up’ the good items and those who know how to bargain take them home.

“For some reason, my older sister, who lives in France and usually sends me money, did not send anything this month. I have five children and with the festive season around the corner, I cannot afford to shop in conventional stores. So I decided to shop for clothes here”, explains C. A.

Booming second-hand markets
The second-hand market of Kouté has grown since the installation of hundreds of makeshift counters. But this is no longer the only second-hand market in the Ivorian economic capital, Abidjan, where the sale of second-hand clothing items from Europe has taken over the streets and even residential areas.

These open markets have become the favourite shopping destination for many young Ivorians whose purchasing power has decreased dramatically.

Good deal for all
Marco Anoukié, 22, just made a good deal. In his shoulder bag is a pair of Italian leather shoes - his dream shoes. “I just bought them for only 15,000 CFA francs. They are second-hand shoes but I think they will last for a long time. My budget for the festive season does not allow me to buy new ones, so it’s a good deal”, says Marco, happy of his purchase.

Like Marco, 19-year-old Stéphanie Kra has been a happy customer ever since she discovered the second-hand clothes market at Carrefour Saint Jean, in the district of Cocody, Abidjan’s upmarket neighbourhood.

“I used to spend entire afternoons window-shopping in clothing stores in the Plateau and Cocody neighbourhoods. That’s where I used to do my shopping for the festive season. But this year, the prices were quite high. […] The second-hand markets provide us with a good alternative”, says Stéphanie, claiming that she purchased good condition quality shoes and clothes at very low prices.

Ivorians who are very fond of luxury goods are increasingly turning away from supermarkets and shopping centres, where they can afford fewer and fewer goods with their dwindling budgets. Instead, second-hand markets have become their preferred alternative.