KUALA LUMPUR, May 3 — In previous years, Wan used to trade in one of Klang Valley’s most coveted Ramadan bazaar locations — Taman Tun Dr Ismail — where he sold sweet treats such as the tepung pelita and the yellow mesh pancakes roti jala served with curry.

The location usually hosts a large gathering of traders and hawkers, drawing crowds of customers spoilt for choice to break their fasts. The heavy foot traffic was more than enough to ensure profit.

All this changed with the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent movement control order (MCO) that prohibited mass gatherings including Ramadan bazaars.

"In a single day, I used to sell tens and tens of trays during the bazaar. I don’t have to do much advertising as the tepung pelita sell themselves   Now, I’ll be lucky to even sell five trays a day,’’ she told Malay Mail in a recent interview, adding that a single tray usually held 70 pieces of the Malay kuih.

To make up for that loss of income, small traders and hawkers such as Wan have now resorted to selling directly to customers in Ramadan, usually in an informal way through social media such as Facebook, or chat groups on WhatsApp and Telegram.

Many have taken to various chat groups or Facebook groups formed around these informal online Ramadan bazaars, mostly catering to specific areas such as Kelana Jaya or Taman Tun Dr Ismail, to name a few.

Much like the normal Ramadan bazaars themselves, these online bazaars are peppered with dishes associated with the fasting month, from kambing golek or lamb grilled on a spit, to the ubiquitous Roti John, a sandwich of omelette and spiced minced meat topped with sauces.

These traders have taken it on themselves to reach out to the customers, despite the availability of government-endorsed e-bazaar platforms.

Selangor, for example, introduced two platforms: Grab Selangor and the Selangor Platform with 77 collection centres consisting of 10 local authority halls and 67 restaurants that would provide food for Ramadan throughout the state.

For many, they prefer to deal directly with customers as their profits are too little to be shared with delivery services such as Grab, Bungkusit, Mr Speedy, Zepto Express and MatDespatch.

However many sellers have taken the responsibility to do their own deliveries at a limited capacity, usually no more than a certain range from where they would operate, charging fees between RM3 to RM 15 or more depending on the delivery location.

Wan, for example, could not be bothered with the red tape surrounding these official e-bazaars.

"I can’t go on to platforms such as FoodPanda, perhaps there are too many applications at this time. Same goes for GrabFood, which limits the application to brick and mortar stores,” she said.

"A small trader like myself operating from my house in Kota Damansara might not fit their criteria but I still need to fill orders. However, using such platforms would also cut into my profits as we need to balance the profit margin on top of the delivery charges to make it affordable to the customers.

"But I don’t deny that access into the platforms could give me more orders and perhaps I could get by with selling in volume,’’ said Wan.

But the lack of formality in these platforms poses its own challenges. For example, customers would have to enquire what each trader is selling, followed by the trader replying in a comment together with the price and charges.

"Dealing with customers directly can take up a lot of time, especially to convey information or to assure them that we do deliver to their homes,’’ said Wan.

Among the most glaring challenges for traders is the time factor, as Muslim customers prefer to receive their food before breaking fast — at roughly 7.20pm in the Klang Valley.

"It is a tough challenge as we have to manage orders for days in advance. Even if there are orders for the day, we do not entertain requests after 1pm to ensure that orders arrived at the location as early or accurately as possible,’’ said another trader, who sells buttermilk chicken rice to residents in Kelana Jaya and adjacent neighbourhoods.

Dealing with orders that come in different platforms all at one time can also be a headache.

"I also have to arrange for logistics, talk to customers at so many different platforms, then make a list, then arrange delivery which is a nightmare on its own.

"Some delivery service wouldn’t go to certain areas and even if they do deliver, the charges may not be worth it,’’ she said.

Last week, Reuters reported that some 100,000 Malaysian hawkers have been badly hit by the MCO, with losses estimated at around RM50 million.

Malaysia is currently under the fourth phase of the MCO, which will run until May 12, and has been speculated to be renewed again until after Aidilfitri.