SLIM RIVER: Superhero 'Spiderman' swung in to town and took advantage of the carnival-like atmosphere of the Slim state by-election by selling 'petai' across the street from Dewan Tan Sri Ghazali Jawi, here, today.
The unique marketing strategy employed by 'Spiderman', whose alter-ego is mild-mannered T. Selvakumar, from Slim village, near here, attracted onlookers and customers who purchased the bitter bean Malaysian delicacy.
The 22-year-old, who has been selling petai in and around Muallim, Kuala Kubu Baru, Batang Kali and Rawang, Selangor over the past two months said he adopted the costume of the Marvel comics character to boost sales.
The International Business studies student at a private college chose to sell petai to earn a side income to cover his daily expenses, as well as to care for his grandmother, T. Ambega, 64.
"My late grandfather sold petai for 10 years, and now that my classes are conducted online, I decided to do the same work.
"I did not open a stall, instead, I sell the petai from my car boot. Only to be different and attract customers did I don my Spiderman costume," he said today.
Selvakumar said he sources the petai from the Orang Asli community in Kampung Ulu Slim and collects his supply daily to ensure their freshness.
"In a day, I could earn up to RM300, but there are also days when I cannot get back my capital
"Today, I decided to stop by at Slim River due to the carnival-like atmosphere accompanying the by-election. Many have bought (the petai), talked to me as well as taken pictures," said Selvakumar, who also sells peeled petai.
He said he is not ashamed of selling the humble petai, as long as it brings in an honest income.a
There were times he was teased by those who said that Spiderman's job is to climb buildings instead of selling petai, he said with a laugh.
"I am still studying and this (selling petai) is merely a side income. Furthermore, I do not want to be far away from grandmother as she suffers from diabetes and high blood pressure," he added.