A1 Bakery owner Eddie Abdallah outside the nowclosed temporary clearance centre, which he says impacted negatively on his business.By Shaun Inguanzo
A DANDENONG baker in Lonsdale Street is furious after a temporary factory clearance sale created parking havoc for his customers and business.
But the City of Greater Dandenong has defended the parking push brought upon by the sale’s popularity, and said any trader could have a popular sale at any given time that would generate an increase in parking activity.
A televisionadvertised clearance sale of liquidated brandname clothing hit central Dandenong late last month during the city’s free onstreet parking period.
A1 Bakery owner Eddie Abdallah said his regular customers were forced to park illegally along Lonsdale Street and were consequently booked, after people rushed to pick up bargains on a variety of designer fashion.
He said the parking mayhem had deterred customers from visiting the bakery during the sale’s duration.
“I reckon it shouldn’t have been allowed to open,” Mr Abdallah said. “Stuff like this should be open somewhere else where there is enough parking for them. It really hurt us. The whole week we got destroyed here.”
The Lonsdale Street clearance outlet was organised by Asset Corp, which is listed under the telephone directory as located at 221 Lonsdale Street, where the sale took place.
Star attempted to contact Asset Corp several times to discuss the parking situation in Lonsdale Street, but received no response.
Meanwhile, Mr Abdallah said he hoped similar sales would in the future be held elsewhere.
“I do my best to keep the store busy and keep customers coming back, but things like this drive them away,” he said.
“I don’t mind if they do it in Dandenong, but to do it in the street like this, here, affects us.”
City of Greater Dandenong manager of regulatory services Peter Shelton said any retailer on the street was entitled to hold a sale, and increased parking activity was a “simple reality”.
“When it happens parking demand may exceed supply, and if it happens it is generally only a shortterm thing,” he said. “We all have to accept that once in a while a fellow trader may do something to attract extra business.
“And a business like a bakery would get the spinoff of people wanting to stop and have a coffee and buy a cake, which is good for business.”
