Roberta’s Monthly Travels To Market Turns A Profit For Her
Roberta Sword, travels from Suva to Vuda in Lautoka once a month to sell her handmade jewellery at the Vuda Market.
Sunday 10 July 2022 | 12:37
Roberta Sword, travels from Suva to Vuda in Lautoka once a month to sell her handmade jewellery at the Vuda Market.
The mother of four resides in Gordon Street in the capital. She spends $100 for fuel just to travel down to the Western Division where she stays with family in Lautoka.
From there she gets the opportunity to go and sell her handmade jewellery at the Vuda Market using it as an ideal time to catch up with loved ones also.
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The recent Vuda Beach Market Day was held on July 2 at the First Landing Resort in Lautoka where 47 vendors set up tents to sell their items.
“I love what I do and it takes a lot of patience, but it’s calming when you do stuff like this. You forget about time, you just get lost in it,” she said.
“This will be my third year at the Vuda Market but in the ROC Market, I’ve been there for 14 or 15 years. I started with the Westpac Market in Garden City when it first opened then I went to the ROC Market and I’ve been there ever since.”
She said most of the materials she uses are local with some bought from Australia and Hong Kong depending on what materials are being ordered.
“I sell earrings, flowers, crochet flowers, braided freshwater pearls, we also sell products for the solo mums,” she said.
The necklaces are anywhere from $8 to $20, the earrings range from as low as $3 to $8 and the pendant pieces are from $8 to $20.
She works every day throughout the month and then she has different boxes for different markets.
“When I go back now I’ll start making things for the next market,” she said.
Vuda Beach Market Day organizer, Sheryl Reyes, urged young entrepreneurs to join the Vuda Beach Market because it was an ideal platform to showcase their talents and generate income.
“We have paintings, handmade jewellery, and nice jean bags. Most things sold are homemade and I think we have some businesses here like Indulge and Vanua Coffee but we also have around seven or eight new ones,” she said.
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