Second-hand market and repurposing bloom in Lebanon amid economic crisis

Record ID: 1696301

  • Title: Second-hand market and repurposing bloom in Lebanon amid economic crisis
  • Date: 6th November 2022
  • Summary: BEIRUT, LEBANON (OCTOBER 20, 2022) (REUTERS) SYRIAN SHOP OWNER HUSSEIN AHMAD WALKING IN HIS SHOP IN SABRA NEIGHBOR, BEIRUT AHMAD AT HIS SHOP HOLDING A USED SCHOOL BAG AHMAD STITCHING USED A SCHOOL BAG (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) SYRIAN SHOP OWNER, HUSSEIN AHMAD, SAYING: “When the crisis hit the country, I figured that maintaining and fixing stuff is better than selling and buyi
  • Embargoed: 20th November 2022 10:15
  • Keywords: Lebanon crisis secondhand
  • Location: BEIRUT, LEBANON
  • City: BEIRUT, LEBANON
  • Country: Lebanon
  • Topics: Middle East,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA001725305112022RP1
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text:In one of Beirut's popular markets, residents of the Lebanese capital have resorted to second-hand shopping to get by during the severe economic crisis that has loomed over the country over the past three years.
    In the busy Sabra market, Hussein Ahmad runs a shop that displays everything from used clothes, shoes, all kinds of electronics, kitchen tools, households, and even sports medals that were once achieved by people who sold them out.
    Arriving in Lebanon from the city of Aleppo in Syria, once engineering student Ahmad, came to Lebanon in the hope of a better life. He started to work in Lebanon in construction and restoration, then selling used European clothes until he decided, due to the economic crisis, to learn how to embroider and repair clothes, shoes, and school bags.
    "It wasn’t on my mind at all. Due to the high demand, I learned fixing stuff because people can’t afford buying new stuff, so they are fixing and repairing old stuff.” Ahmad said.
    The economic crisis, the decline in the purchasing power for many citizens, and the collapse of the currency pushed many to sell their furniture or electrical appliances.
    When these items are sold to his shop, Ahmed fixes what needs to be fixed and sells the second-hand items at lower prices that could be found in shopping malls.
    A woman who entered the shop and offered to sell her refrigerator and a washing machine to Ahmad agreed to speak to Reuters on condition she would not be filmed. She said she had already sold her television and other household items in order to be able to pay for her children's school fees.
    Ahmad, who dreamed of being a businessman, now works seven days a week without any day off.
    Now in its third year, Lebanon’s financial meltdown has sunk the currency by more than 90%, spread poverty, and paralyzed the financial system. It is Lebanon’s most destabilizing crisis since the 1975-1990 civil war.
    (Production: Issam Abdallah)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2022. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register