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What went wrongA cobbler in Bhola, in an Ajker Patrika report

Some days 50 taka, some days nothing: 67 years of mending shoes

He has mended shoes since he was nine and is now 76. The day brings anywhere from 50 to 180 taka, 200-300 in winter, and the old-age allowance is 1,650 taka every three months.

This cobbler in Nabippur, Bhola Sadar has mended shoes since he was nine and is now 76 — 67 years in the trade. In his own words: "Some days I make 50 taka, some days 180. And some days not a single taka comes." Only in winter does the day reach 200-300 taka. He cannot afford shop space, so he works on a small plot of land that was given to him. With plastic shoes selling for 50 taka, far fewer people bother to have a pair repaired. Six people depend on him, the debt from marrying off three daughters is still unpaid, and the old-age allowance comes to 1,650 taka every three months.

Lessons

  1. 1.When the new product costs about what the repair costs, the repair trade loses its customers
  2. 2.A trade with no capital and no premises of its own leaves nothing for old age but a small state allowance

Published with the person's permission, without revealing who they are.

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