Cell Phones Reduce Patronage For Wristwatches

• Mobile phones more important

Some wristwatch dealers in Lagos on Tuesday said the introduction of cell phones had caused a drop in the sale of wristwatches.

They told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in separate interviews that their sales had dropped since the introduction of cell phones.

NAN reports that Global System of Mobile Communication (GSM) was introduced in 2001 by the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

Mr. John Emeka, Chairman, Avido Supermarket in Ketu, Lagos, told NAN that sale of wristwatches had dropped since phone handsets were also offering the facility.

“I have been operating my supermarket since 1994 and before the inception of cell phones, I sold close to 10 wristwatches a day.

“But since 2001, I hardly sell 15 wristwatches in a month,” he said.

Malam Audu Abubakar, another wristwatch seller in Lawanson, corroborated Emeka’s view.

“As a result of reduction in the sale of wristwatches, I have diverted into selling chains and rings,” Audu said.

According to him, the only type of wristwatch selling in the market now is gold plated wristwatches because most customers believed that their value appreciates with time.

Mr. Suleiman Kabir, a wristwatch hawker, said that some people believed wristwatches were fashion items and still preferred to buy them while others thought it was a waste of resources.

Mr. Kenny Agunbiade, a wristwatch repairer, told NAN that he had learnt to repair phones since few people were now using wristwatches.

Agunbiade said that he was making more money repairing phones than selling wristwatches.

He urged his colleagues to learn how to repair handsets as an alternative source of income.

Mrs. Lola Akinlade, a food seller in Iganmu, said that a wristwatch was now a fashion item to complement one’s dressing.

“I can no longer waste my money on a wristwatch since what I need is on my phone,” she said.

Mrs. Felicia Falade, a recharge card seller, said she rarely remembered using a wristwatch since the introduction of cell phones.

Falade said that the purpose of using a wristwatch was to know the time, a facility which a cell phone was also providing.

[PM News]