Chair and umbrella vendors say they’re missing out on revenue because of restrictions

National Conservation Commission (NCC) General Manager Ryan Als has rejected an appeal by Brownes Beach vendors to raise the quota of furniture they are licensed to lease amid rising demand for chairs and umbrellas this winter season.

On Thursday, several vendors who operate along the mile-long sandy strip along Bay Street told Barbados TODAY that they could be losing out on as much as $300 extra in revenue owing to restrictions on the quantity of furniture they could lease.

They called on the NCC to allow them to apply for additional furniture during peak times, especially considering the expected increase in tourism for the winter season. Tourism officials have announced favourable prospects, anticipating 392 cruise calls bringing 715 527 passengers.

“The vendors on Brownes Beach have a specific amount of umbrellas and chairs they are supposed to put out each day,” one vendor said. “Everybody has a different quota. Some people may have nine umbrellas, ten or 13. Out of tourist season, when nothing is really going on, people only put out a few umbrellas – let’s say six umbrellas and 12 chairs. But this is the tourist season (winter season), which lasts from [late] November to April. When you have an influx of people coming on the beach we should be able to put out more umbrellas and chairs.

“There is an influx of people coming on the beach. Let’s say 7 000 people are coming from the cruise ships, a lot of them will come to the beach. Those that want a chair and an umbrella, I don’t see why as vendors we cannot facilitate as many of them as possible. Sometimes things get so busy that all the chairs are taken up, then a taxi man calls you and says I am bringing 14 people. We haven’t had business like this in a long while due to COVID-19 and we would like to capitalise on the tourists’ arrivals just like anyone else,” the vendor added.

Another vendor noted that NCC rangers put pressure on the vendors to ensure they operated within the law and while he could not get angry for “a man doing his job”, he called on the commission’s management to visit the beach at least once during the winter season to better understand the vendors’ perspective.

He said: “The problem is not the rangers, it’s the people at the top that do not really understand what goes on because they just sit in an office. They need to come and spend a day on the beach when it is busy, like today, and see that a lot of people want chairs and umbrellas because outside is really hot. Our thing is that the bigger businesses, like the beach bars, don’t have a quota and we think it is unfair.”

But in denying the request to put out additional umbrellas and chairs, Als said the NCC already faced a series of complaints from members of the public about hampered access to Brownes Beach.

“No we cannot,” he told Barbados TODAY. “We also have complaints from Barbadians stating that there are too many chairs and umbrellas on the beach and they have no space; so we have to strike a balance. While they may want to make extra money, there are locals who would like to use the beach to play with their children or just enjoy the space with family and friends, so we cannot inconvenience the general public. It is not fair to [the public] because the beach belongs to everyone, it is not only there for [the vendors] to make money.”

Responding to the vendors’ complaints that beach bars can put out more chairs and umbrellas, Als pointed out that those establishments pay land tax on the section of the beach they occupy.

“So are we to put the vendors on the spaces the other business pays for? That is not fair either,” he insisted.

sheriabrathwaite@barbadostoday.bb