University of Perpetual Help System Laguna – JONELTA

Senior High School

12. When you have a job already, you can save money and you do not need to ask for money

from your parents for allowance. I could decide on how much money I will bring since I

already have a job.

13. I learned that it is very hard to have a job especially if you are young and you are a working

student but it is a great help because you can help your family and you could comply your

needs on school.

14. Simply sales talk.

15. Of course you have to be courageous. You need to always smile.

16. Ah.. conversing with the customers, something like that.

17. Strategies, and to pray a lot.

18. Because my customers often come by at 10 so I need to wake up at 6 am to tidy things up.

19. (My advantage is) The food that we are selling is clean.

20. Sometimes, your focus drifts to your work rather than school.

After horizonalizing, theme clustering was done by analyzing, outlining and grouping

the significant statements into themes or meaningful units. The researchers were able to identify

(number) theme clusters divided into two. The first group of theme clusters was formulated to

answer the central questions of the study: what have the participants experienced in selling their

goods in the street (textural description). The second group of themes answered the second

central question: how have the participants benefit from selling on the street daily (structural

description). Table 2 presents the groupings of clustered themes based on the significant

statements and their relative ideas.

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Table 2
Theme Clusters Divided into Two Groups
Group A: Textural Themes
Theme [Link] Realistic Approach
- Support their families
- Financial reasons
Theme 2. Experiences
- Exhausting
- Helpful
Theme 3. Time Management
- Balanced
- Hectic
Group B: Structural Themes
Theme4. Benefits
- Family needs
- School fees
- Savings
Theme [Link]-Making Methods
- Salestalk
- Approachable

1. As to what have the participants experienced in selling their goods in the street?

Theme 1. Early Realistic Approach. These young vendors are exposed to the harsh realities of

life and chose to do something about it. It is a parent’s responsibility to provide for their

children. However, sometimes, it is the other way around. Because of poverty and the lack of

education of their parents, the family income is not enough to sustain their needs. These young

street vendors recognize that and decided to help their family despite their young age. The

participants had the same answers― to help their families. The following are their answers:

1. Ano po kasi ano po, wala pong katulong si mama dito. (Uhm because, there is no one to

help my mom.)

2. Para matulungan ko mga parents ko (So that I can help my parents.)

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4) Tumutulong ho sa pamilya. (Helping my parents.)

According to Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) policy brief (2013), persons who

would otherwise be unemployed or without livelihood take refuge in the informal economy

especially in developing countries that have a large and rapidly growing labor force due to the

relative ease of entry and low requirements for education, skills, technology and capital in most

economic units and activities in the informal economy. Under Philippine child labor laws, it is

illegal for people below 18 years old to work for a living. Though, a 2017 report commissioned

by the International Labour Organization (ILO) has found children as young as 7 years old are

working on the streets with financial difficulties identified as the main reason that caused the

children to drop out of school.

Theme 2. Experiences. Being under eighteen, the age where a person should be busy and

focused to school only, is tiring already. However, working and studying at the same time is a

different level. That is why the researchers investigated the lived experiences of young street

vendors who face risks every day. The five participants have different responses about their lived

experiences in selling their goods on the street. They shared their frustrations about the hard

work, the hassle and exhaustion but at the same time, they are thankful that their hardworks paid

off because they are able to support their family. Among these answers are:

2) Minsan kasi, dumadaan din kami sa ano mababa lang kasi sobrang tumal, kaya

kailangan magpursige kami para di kami dumaan ulit sa katumalan. (Sometimes, we

experience slow and dull hours, so we have to work hard for us not to go through that

again.)

1) Pagod na rin po. Nakakapagod po. (Also, tiring. It is very exhausting.)

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5) Uhm, napapagod din po tapos sa sobrang init nung ano, nung baga. Tapos minsan yung

ibang customer medyo strict sila sa kung paano aayusin yung pagtitinda, yung ganon.

(Uhm, it is very tiring and very hot because of the burning coal. Then sometimes, some

customers are strict on how to do things properly, like that)

Surviving as a street vendor requires a certain amount of skill. Within self-employment,

street trade is one of the most visible occupations, yet few cities successfully balance the need to

support livelihoods with the need to manage public space, thus, making them operate in

uncertain work environments (Roever & Skinner, 2016). These young street vendors see

themselves as hardworking and as good sons and daughters (Estrada, 2016). It cannot be denied

that there are many obstacles street vendors face every day, however, no Filipino feels the burnt

of these problems more than the numerous street vendors you see roaming the streets of

Philippine cities and they managed to showcase the ingenuity that Filipinos are so famous for

with the way they interact with the world around them (Reynante, 2015).

Theme 3. Time Management. At a young age before 20s, this is where most teens learn to have

fun and give their attention to their studies. These young street vendors mostly started at an early

age and did not wait for their diploma to start earning to support their needs. Even normal

students have difficulties on balancing their time with friends, school, and family. How can these

young street vendors balance their time as working students? Even so if they are an out-of-school

youth, how do they spend their time? The results were very productive and it is impressive. What

they learned early about making money on the road will lead them to a great destination. Here

are what happens through their day(s):

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5) Pag sa umaga papasok sa school ng mga 6:00am to 12:30nn, tapos pag-uwi sa bahay
mga 1:30 to 3:30 pahinga tapos 4:30 pasok na sa trabaho. (In the morning, I will go to
school on 6:00 am to 12:30pm, then after reaching home I will rest for 1:30―3:30 then I
will go to work at 4:30 pm.)
2) kasi malimit na dumadating yung mga suki ko mga 10 kaya kailangan ng ano , magtinda
ng ala sais ng umaga para makapagimis-imis kahit papano. (Because my customers
often come by at 10 so I need to wake up at 6 am to tidy things up.)
3) Ah ayun depende. Kase pag sabado, pag araw-araw mama ko minsan nandito kase nasa
bahay ako gumagawa ng kandila. Pag Friday naman simula umaga hanggang gabi ako.
Pasok sa school, MWF kase ako, sabay pag Tuesday at Thursday nagawa ako ng
kandila. (Ah that, it depends. Because on Saturday, it is my mother who is here because I
am at home making candles. On Friday, I start on the morning until night. I will go to
school, my schedule is MWF so on Tuesday and Thursday, I make candles.)

Staying up night must be a thing for young street vendors. Prince Solano, who went viral

from a Facebook post, where selling on the streets of Makati exposed him to harsh realities of

life, like sleeping on cartons under a flyover “in the company of thieves,” or not sleeping at all

when he vends in Baclaran. Michael and Mario, brothers who sell sampaguita that also became

Facebook famous, works hard until midnight to earn as much as they can to help their mother

make both ends meet for the family. However, they are also one of the early people who are

awake. Teberio, then a 12-year-old grade school student, would wake up early to help his mother

set up their small stall and he would leave for school by 7 am. This only proves how much these

young street vendors are very industrious. Still, there are dangers and concerns about children

working at night, without adequate supervision, at risk of crime and abuse, and working hours

having a negative impact on their education, health and safety according to the 2017 report ofthe

International Labour Organization.

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2. As to how have the participants benefit from selling on the street daily?

Theme 4. Benefits. On everything a person has to do, it must be purposeful. Not only for

themselves, but for the benefit of others, too. These are also the advantages that they gain on

selling on the street. Almost everyone have the same reasons as to why they chose to work at an

early age. There are 3 common results that surfaced on the interviews. Family, being the main

reason as to why they worked, would benefit from it. Sustaining a family in the Philippines is

difficult and poverty is the reason for it. They have to double their hardwork to support their

needs and pay their bills. They started street vending because they might did not have a choice or

they did it on their own will. Second is for their school fees, allowances, miscellaneous and extra

money for projects. School can be quite demanding and students would need to get the support

they can get. Third is they benefit from saving money. They earn money from selling their

products and they could save the money for emergency or for other uses. These are the

statements that can be drawn from the interviews:

3) Ahh, ayun nakakapagbayad kami ng kuryente, pagkain namin. (Ah, well, we are able to

pay our electricity bills and buy our food.)

1) Ano po yung, pera po na naaano ko, pinang-aano ko po sa pag-aaral ko. (The, uhm, the

money is what I, what I use for my education.)

2) Natutunan ko? Ayun nga sinabi ko nga, ano wag masyado maggastos pag di kailangan,
para pag yung perang mga di nagastos naiipon naman ayun lang. (What I learned? So as
what I said, do not spend too much if it is not necessary so that the money you did not
spend, you can save it instead.)

Many Latina/o children in the U.S. street vend with their families in order to help their

parents pay the rent, buy their clothes, food, school supplies and pay for school tuition at

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colleges or private institutions (Estrada, 2016), which can also relates to the situation in the

Philippines on the most parts. Most street vendors provide the main source of income for their

households, bringing food to their families and paying school fees for their children (Roever,

2014). Two of the participants also sell with their family, while the others are on their own but

give their income to their respective families.

Theme 5. Money-Making Methods. People these days are too busy they do not even take notice

of the products that were being sold on the streets as they pass by. That is why sellers have to

improvise to make them noticeable. What strategies or tactics do they use? The observations and

results have big differences because it is different to each person, after all. Participant 1

approaches people with her sampaguita before and after the mass on the entrance of the church

where it is usually crowded. Participant 2 said that oftentimes, you have to lie to sell your

products. This tactic is actually called Card Stacking device where a person shows one-sided

information. It is a strategy of showing the product’s best features, telling half-truths and

emitting or lying about its potential problems. Participant 3 claims he gives his million dollar

smile to attract customers and chat with them, too. He also advises to not be afraid and be brave.

He has a great spot beside the church where people usually line up to go the saint so he really can

earn a lot. Participant 4 directly stated that he sales talk people with his fruits. He is situated a

few meters away from the wet market and under the overpass where people are always walking

pass him. Participant 5 claims that he does not use any and that customers themselves go to him

to buy food. He is selling BBQ and it is one of the favorite Filipino street foods so who could

resist it. Here are their statements:

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1) Ano po yung, mag hanapan po ng pwesto nyo po (Find a good spot to sell.

2) Malimit kapag nagsisinungaling ka sa mga customer mo para makabenta ka diba ganun

lang (Oftentimes, you have to lie to earn)

3) Syempre lakasan ng loob yan. Kailangan nakangiti ka. ahh, pakikipagkwentuhan sa

customer ganun. (Of course you have to be courageous. You need to always smile. Ah..

conversing with the customers, something like that.)

4) Wala, yung salestalk lang din. ‘yun lang. (Nothing, it is simply salestalk, too. That is it.)

The challenges do not stop vendors from dreaming about better ways to do business. These

young street vendors are proud of the money they are earning, and they construct their own

identities and street vending activity in a positive fashion (Estrada, 2016). These young street

vendors also seek to create meanings that attribute positive values to their work and self-worth.

An example of a unique strategy was done by Dodoy, the bubbly street vendor brings joy to

passersby with his jokes and colorful costumes. According to him, he put more effort because he

wants to catch people’s attention, so he thought of a unique way to sell bottled water.

Textural Description. The first three theme clusters answered the first core question: what have

the participants experienced in selling their goods in the street. The first theme cluster

summarizes the young street vendors reasons as to why they are selling on the street. The

participants had the same answers― to help their families. The second theme cluster describes

the participants experiences, as to what happens in their day along with their opinions and

frustrations. They shared their frustrations about the hard work, the hassle and exhaustion but at

the same time, they are thankful that their hardworks pay off because they are able to support

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their family. The third theme cluster explains the time management that these young street

vendors do to balance their personal life, and school activities from work. The results were very

productive and it is impressive. They all wake up early in the morning and work until night. Still,

there are dangers and concerns about children working at night, without adequate supervision, at

risk of crime and abuse, and working hours having a negative impact on their education, health

and safety according to the 2017 report of the International Labour Organization.

Structural Description. The remaining two theme clusters answered the second core question:

how have the participants benefit from selling on the street daily. The fourth theme reveals that

there are different benefits young street vendors can attain. They can help sustain the needs of

their family, they have allowance and money to pay for school, and they can save the extra

money for future and emergency use. The last theme cluster show how young street vendors

strategize on selling their products. Each has unique differences. Participant 1 approaches people

to sell her sampaguitas. Participant 2 and 4 uses sales talk to sell their goods. Participant 3 claims

he gives his million dollar smile to attract customers and chat with them, too. Lastly, Participant

5 attracts his customers with the food he sells. The challenges do not stop vendors from

dreaming about better ways to do business.

Essence. After a conscientious analysis of the textural (what) and structural (how) descriptions

of the experiences shared by the participants, it is proven that street vending is not an easy job

especially to the young people since it needs a lot of effort and their time to be able to work. And

most of them do this kind of job to help their families financially. Even though it is tiring it

surely helps them and benefited them. And for them to be able to have those benefits they do a

lot of sales talking and approach consumers to buy from them. The researchers, was able to find

what street vendors do and how they do their work by the information given by the participants.

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