Sibu Central Market trader laments massive drop in Kek Lapis sales

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SIBU: A trader at Sibu Central Market laments that sales of her homemade Kak Lapis have plummeted due to the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Jijot (left) runs her Kek Lapis stall at Sibu Central Market.

Hajijah Leh, whose friends call her ‘Jijot’, has been running the ‘Hajijah Kek Lapis Sarawak’ stall in the market for five years.

This year, however, has been ‘a nightmare’ for her business.

“The earlier Movement Control Order (MCO), which took effect on March 18 and was in force until May 12, had adversely affected the business.

“Now, there’s the Conditional MCO (CMCO).

“My sales this year have dropped to half from those registered over the past five years,” she said, without disclosing any sales figure.

According to the 43-year-old trader, who hails from Kampung Usahajaya Baru in Salim, the majority of her customers are in Peninsular Malaysia.

“I have been doing networking and promotions via social media They love my Kek Lapis but due to some problems affecting logistics and transportation, it has been very difficult to deliver the cakes to my customers in the peninsula.

“I just pray that this Covid-19 situation would be over soon,” she said.

Jijot said for a baked Kek Lapis Sarawak, it would take about two hours to cook, while the steamed variety would take around six hours. Throughout the current CMCO, ‘Hajijah Kek Lapis Sarawak’ stall is open for business from 7am to 4pm daily.