On the first day of the trade, the queues were spread out somewhere and the beauty salons were filled with orders – not everyone was satisfied.

Beauty services, massage parlors, or other providers are available starting Monday. Small shops of up to 300 square meters can also be opened. meters with independent entrances from the field.

Representatives of different activities share opposite moods on the first day of activity: some are happy with the abundance of orders, others complain that the activity is limited and they still have to wait.

“The employment is really very high because as soon as the government announced the resolution, clients were quick to write. In the first few weeks, some classrooms are already completely full. Clearly, mainly due to limitations: distances and the like. As a result, it is not possible to accept as many clients as usual and the salons fill up faster, ”said Marija Antanaitytė, director of the international beauty services platform Treatwell in Lithuania.

Zita Sorokienė, President of the Lithuanian Small Entrepreneurs and Traders Association, sighs at the fact that a large number of traders will still have to wait for new launches; some traders or market traders will continue to work.

However, there were already queues at some stores on Monday. Delphi the photographer recorded how little by little businesses are opening in Vilnius. Shoppers abound at Humana’s store on Trakų Street. According to readers, the queues at Humana spread to other parts of the city. Walking through the city, you can see that the rest of the stores are still preparing and have not opened the door according to the written schedule. Elsewhere, another customer is seen.

Haircuts for men and women are the most popular in beauty salons.

M. Antanaitytė, director of Treatwell in Lithuania, appreciates that salon visitors crave services.

“I have not worked for two months, and some for three months, so people want to come back as soon as possible. It is still too early to evaluate the price statistics, we do not have them, but yes, we had a couple of requests in the that we wanted to raise prices. It is very likely that prices in beauty salons are also going up because they cannot accept as many people as before, “says M. Antanaitytė.

She says the most popular service is men’s haircuts, followed by women’s haircuts, hair coloring, manicures, eyelashes, eyebrows, and eyelash treatments.

“There were some who informed us that they had decided not to open yet, just because they didn’t have enough space or couldn’t take enough people. I know some teachers also say that it’s not worth working yet because they can only work a couple of days at a time. week. There are definitely those who still cannot work, all for security reasons, “explained M. Antanaitytė.

She says the tests are popular with salon professionals and are an added guarantee of safety for clients.

“I also follow a lot of hair salons and beauty masters on social media; a lot of people shared negative test results to make sure it’s safe to visit. As far as we conducted the surveys, customer safety is now one of the most important indicators to decide whether to visit the salon or not ”, says M. Antanaitytė.

Sorokiene – Merchants carry merchandise to the market.

Z. Sorokienė, President of the Lithuanian Association of Small Entrepreneurs and Traders, criticizes the new exemptions for traders. According to her, some, even if they can act, will not open on Monday; they will wait until the end of the commemoration of the Day of Restoration of the State of Lithuania.

“Trade in the markets is not liberalized. The markets are isolated, although the conditions are really safe and can work, but only the open air trade remains. People cannot open kiosks, they cannot trade in pavilions even though they are in areas They are not heated, doors or a wall are always open. It did not allow the opening of market stalls, pavilions, I do not understand why. Even before the quarantine, traders would admit one buyer at a time and, if they knew They had to be careful. This prohibition is not fair, “says the representative of small businessmen.

It ensures that there are no large flows of buyers in the marketplaces, the areas are large and the customers are distributed.

“It just came to our notice then. Only today, Monday, most markets are closed, Tuesday holidays, so more operations will start mid-week. People will take the products out of their kiosks, put them in temporary devices and the It will trade. That trade will not be what it is. But since people have been sitting for two months and cannot work at all, they have no income, they end up losing their savings in the end, they are forced to go to open-air commerce “, explains Z Sorokienė.

He assures that the government’s decision is not yet favorable for small businesses.

“Those who have tickets from the field, of course, open. But there are stores that operate in buildings where there are other businesses or services nearby. They do not have direct entry from the outside because they are in some space and cannot function. The limitations are still high enough and many small shops will not be open because of them, ”laments Z. Sorokienė.

The head of the association is also surprised that it is not possible to work in stores in supermarkets.

“It is strange when people work near the supermarket, there are people with a lot of traffic and they are not in danger, nobody sees any threat. And then, in the same way that people take, if there is a small store, will it already be a threat? This situation is incomprehensible, there is a lack of logical arguments somewhere: why. I think this is not right, but today we have no choice but to wait for everything to be published, “says Z. Sorokienė.

He assures that the people who can take advantage of the opportunity to earn money, since until now they have had to live on the support of 260 euros per month. The small business representative lacks further support.

“It just came to our attention then. The freelancers have not yet received support on the second package, it is not ready and it is not clear when it will be,” says Z. Sorokienė.

He also questioned the government’s proposed support for testing employees before starting operations.

“The money for that is huge, those 30 million. The euros for the tests are taken from the second support package, which is designed to help companies directly. The tests can be necessary, but anyone who wants to can do it. But now the money has been taken, and those direct measures that were intended to help the business and that the commercial representatives offered are no longer in that package. The test is not eternal, one day it may be one way, another day it may be different. This measure has no guarantees “, doubts Z. Sorokienė.

The quarantine in Lithuania is valid from November 7. From December 16. Tighter restrictions apply and the first waivers went into effect on February 15.