By Selloane Ntshonyane
- Berlina Telide sells hats and socks next to the Pimville Complex to pay rent for her shack and buy food.
- The grandmother takes home just R150 on bad days and struggles when customers take clothes but fail to pay her.
Berlina Telide spends her days sitting next to the Pimville Complex. The 67-year-old sells clothes on the side of the road to survive.
Telide has run her small street stall in the busy area for more than 20 years. She sells umbrellas, men’s and women’s hats, socks, leggings and gloves.
She started the business because she struggled to find work.
“I wanted to create an income for myself because it was difficult to get a job,” she said.
Telide started out selling snacks before moving on to clothes. When she first started, she bought stock in bulk with just R1,000.
Now, high prices have crushed that plan. She travels to the Johannesburg CBD to buy her stock bit by bit because prices have gone up.
Business is slow and many customers can no longer afford to buy clothes immediately.
“Some take clothes and promise to pay on payday, but it is not always guaranteed,” she said.
On a rare good day, Telide makes about R500. On a bad day, she takes home just R150.
“It is not enough at all,” she said.
Telide faces a mountain of monthly bills. She pays R650 in rent for her shack, R300 for funeral cover, R200 for a stokvel and around R2,000 for groceries.
Money is so tight that she only buys clothes for herself and her grandchildren once a year.
Her biggest struggle is keeping her business alive from day to day. Sometimes she is forced to take money meant for new stock and use it to buy bread, airtime and food.
Pictured above: Berlina Telide still spends her days selling clothes on the side of the road next to Pimville Complex in order to survive.
Image source: Supplied
