Maracay businesses were active during the holiday

Rodolfo Gamarra

Shops in downtown Maracay, capital of Aragua state, opened their doors yesterday, despite the long weekend. They argued that the economic situation forces them to work, even on holidays. Some said there was much more movement than on a working day.

Shops kept their doors open with the national tricolor hanging at the entrances. Large numbers of people walked through the streets and visited shopping malls.

Barbara Linares, manager of a shoe store, said that they had registered several sales in the morning.

He stressed the fact that following the pandemic, “work does not stop during the holidays”, on the contrary, “most of the time it is a good opportunity to increase demand”.

“With this economic situation, they cannot afford to stop working. This custom has been disappearing for a long time. There is always something for sale and we have to take advantage of every day we can work.”

For her part, María Fernanda García, manager of a food business in downtown Maracay, said that not everyone can go to the beach, so those who can take advantage of it do “some shopping.”

He also said that the payment of salaries at the end of the month “helped commercial activity to increase this weekend.”

In the same vein, García stressed that following a “dry season” in which they were left without electricity several times a day, “the commercial sector cannot and should not take days off.”

He insisted that, although everyone is free to lower their shutters, “the reality of the economy dictates that if we want to meet our commitments, we must make the most of the days we can work.”

Photos by Rodolfo Gamarra