KANGAR: A part-time Harummanis mango grower has been forced to open a drive-through stall in front of his house at Kampung Baru Syed Omar near here to sell the famous Perlis Harumanis mango, after incurring losses using the courier delivery method.
Danial Afiq Azizi, 26, said slow delivery service had caused his fruits to go bad and he had to refund his customers.
“A kilogramme of Harumanis mangoes is worth between RM18 and RM25 depending on its quality, so I need to bear the losses when I have to refund the money.
“I also had to incur losses when some interstate buyers from Putrajaya, Kuala Lumpur and Melaka told me the packages they received were torn or the number of fruits was less compared to the one I shipped out.
“So, I took the initiative to sell the Harumanis in front of my house during the Movement Control Order (MCO),” he said.
In the previous seasons, he sold the mangoes from his half-acre farm at the back of his house directly to the customers.
Danial Afiq said one box of his Harumanis weighing between two and three kg is sold at a price of between RM50 and RM70 at the drive-thru stall starting 1.30 pm.
“The response is very positive and I can sell more than 100 kg per day which is more than using the online selling method,” he said.
The eldest of three siblings explained that one tree could produce about 80kg of mangoes depending on its age, while the proceeds from the sale were used to help his mother and siblings who were still in school.
He said since the MCO was enforced, he could not continue his job as a marketing and event agent, but he felt grateful to be able to sell the famous Perlis mangoes and gain alternative income.
“I have a plan to continue with this business in future and increase the number of trees. I will also improve my drive-through stall,” he said.
To meet the demand, he also offers cash on delivery (COD) and home delivery services. — Bernama