Mfundekelwa Mkhulisi
Mfundekelwa Mkhulisi
Some parents decided to wait for the last minute before schools open to buy uniforms for their children.
Long queues were the order of the day outside school-wear shops such as Viva, Snappers and Lee in Johannesburg yesterday.
Hordes of parents, some pulling their little children to the shops to fit their new clothes, swamped the outlets hoping they would still find uniforms.
But the last-minute wait brought bad news for some.
"I did not get everything because the shop has run out of stock," said a disappointed Pumla Maqula.
She said Viva was the only shop selling her daughter's uniform.
"I got the list of things required from the school early and I had the money to buy them, but somehow I decided to wait until after Christmas. Now I regret my decision," Maqula said.
She said the store manager told her the new stock would only be available at the end of the month.
She said she expected to spend more than R900 on her daughter's summer uniform and an extra R400 in winter.
Pely Kambule from Pimville, Soweto, said: "I have been standing in the queue for more than two hours. It is moving slowly but there is nothing I can do."
She said she received the money late for her two daughters' uniform.
"There was no queue in December and if I had the money I would have bought everything then," she said, moving slowly towards the entrance of Snappers.
Viva store manager Mohamed Seedat said he ran out of stock because of the high demand for the uniforms.
Some customers questioned the monopoly that certain shops have on school uniforms.
They said it was not fair to have only one shop selling school uniforms for certain schools because they tend to be expensive.
Last minute rush for school uniforms
Mfundekelwa Mkhulisi
Mfundekelwa Mkhulisi
Some parents decided to wait for the last minute before schools open to buy uniforms for their children.
Long queues were the order of the day outside school-wear shops such as Viva, Snappers and Lee in Johannesburg yesterday.
Hordes of parents, some pulling their little children to the shops to fit their new clothes, swamped the outlets hoping they would still find uniforms.
But the last-minute wait brought bad news for some.
"I did not get everything because the shop has run out of stock," said a disappointed Pumla Maqula.
She said Viva was the only shop selling her daughter's uniform.
"I got the list of things required from the school early and I had the money to buy them, but somehow I decided to wait until after Christmas. Now I regret my decision," Maqula said.
She said the store manager told her the new stock would only be available at the end of the month.
She said she expected to spend more than R900 on her daughter's summer uniform and an extra R400 in winter.
Pely Kambule from Pimville, Soweto, said: "I have been standing in the queue for more than two hours. It is moving slowly but there is nothing I can do."
She said she received the money late for her two daughters' uniform.
"There was no queue in December and if I had the money I would have bought everything then," she said, moving slowly towards the entrance of Snappers.
Viva store manager Mohamed Seedat said he ran out of stock because of the high demand for the uniforms.
Some customers questioned the monopoly that certain shops have on school uniforms.
They said it was not fair to have only one shop selling school uniforms for certain schools because they tend to be expensive.