Assessing Coping Mechanisms of Informal Traders to Ensure Business Sustainability

Informal traders are faced with unique challenges affecting business sustainability. The lack of infrastructure and ability to adopt digital financial and business tools among informal traders is a significant challenge in many developing economies. Simultaneously, they need to deal with the impact of a lack of electricity supply caused by load shedding. The purpose of this article is to assess the load shedding coping mechanisms of informal traders to ensure business sustainability. A phenomenological, qualitative research approach was adopted for the assessment of the target population, informal traders. Data was collected through semi-structured, face-to-face, in-depth interviews, that were purposively sampled from 12 informal traders in five different districts in the designated population. The interviews were transcribed and thematically analysed. Limited access to digital technologies—including mobile payment platforms, online marketing tools, and digital financial services—restricts informal trader’s ability to adapt to these electricity disruptions and diversify their sales channels. Informal traders seem to cope with load shedding through various coping mechanisms, namely, survival, adaption, innovation, resource access, cooperation and resource sharing, stakeholder relations, autonomy, and diversification. The resilience of informal traders despite the challenges regarding load shedding often allows their businesses to remain sustainable. The study provided useful guidelines and strategies for informal traders and stakeholders such as the local municipality, policymakers, community leaders and energy suppliers. Recommendations include that informal traders should be vigilant and proactive by putting measures in place to shield them against the impact of load shedding and consider the use of alternative energy sources and explore the use of digitalisation, such as mobile device payment technologies.