Building on last week’s article about “managing stuff,” I will follow up with some observations about different forms of economic livelihood in the places we have recently traveled and how they compare to those back home. The common theme in both worlds is “simplicity” but this is a relative term. One trade I observed with fascination in Thailand was that of the street “broom vendors.” The first thing I did when I saw these folks was snap a picture and send it to my former Human Resource Director instructing him to present it to the next employee who comes to his office complaining about their job. Things could be much worse people! Upon further investigation, I discovered this way of making a living was not so bad. These folks enjoy inpendence/autonomy, flexibility, daily physical activity, diversity, opportunity for product trades, lots of social interaction and no worries about product obsolescence. Most of us can’t tout this about our respective jobs!
Every morning these folks load up their push carts with all manner of handmade brooms and hit the city streets to peddle their product. The supply side of this business model is easy to figure out as most people in Thailand use their hands and/or bodies to make products or provide services so handmade production is quite common. The question I asked myself was: “Where did the demand come from and/or who was buying these brooms to keep the broom vendors in business?
Having quickly engaged in observation of local culture and lifestyles in SE Asia, I noted that there is a great deal of individual pride in keeping things “tidied up.” Given homes and businesses are often one in the same and are adjacent to market street pedestrian traffic, how you “keep your premises” is on public display. Boy, would we all be in trouble on this front, right? Combined with living and operating in small spaces, this leads to all manner of efficiencies and cleanliness practices. Given the outdoor rubbish that accumulates from daily market traffic along with continually falling vegetation from tropical canapes, there is an ongoing need to keep up with it. I often saw business owners and/or family members engaged in “tidying up” which could be a full time job depending on an individual’s tendency toward obsessive compulsive behavior. Their focus remains on personal property and does not extend to adjacent properties and/or the neighborhood at large, thus, there is always a, sometimes subtle, “mix of order” on the streets which locals and tourists learn to differentiate between making patronage decisions accordingly. Thus, the need for brooms, many brooms for different purposes, that wear out quickly and need to be replaced often. During the month I worked in the tree canopied front yard of the Thai textile master who taught me weaving, I often saw the broom vendor passing through the neighborhood. Having engaged his neighbor to keep his front yard “tidied up,” my teacher made several purchases from the broom vendor throughout the month which makes for a good repeat customer. Can you imagine purchasing a new broom every month from a door to door salesperson??? It does bring back memories of the Fuller Brush man, doesn’t it? Beyond the periodic ice cream purchase from the Schwann man, should any of us need a new broom or anything else for that matter, we just tap a few buttons on our computer and anxiously await next day delivery of our online purchases. I don’t know about you but in “coming home” I prefer to buy local which I think makes me “old school” or at least “one with the Thai’s.” 2018