New summer strategies of the top manta in Barcelona to evade the pressure from the Guardia Urbana. These days, these unauthorized street vendors of counterfeit products are mainly positioning themselves on the Besòs and Llobregat sides of Plaça Catalunya and also on Passeig de Gràcia, in front of the Apple store, La Pedrera, Casa Batlló… and they do so mostly during the morning hours.
In previous summers and also this past Christmas, these unauthorized street vendors used to spread their blankets mainly along the city’s coastline, around Moll de la Fusta, the wooden walkway of Maremagnum, and the surroundings of the Museu d’Història de Catalunya, mainly around dusk, when the city started to cool down and the shift changes of the port police gave them a brief respite.
Lamine Yamal’s t-shirts are the star and preferred low-cost souvenir for many tourists
Also, this summer these street vendors are moving mostly in pairs, instead of in groups of about half a dozen, as they had been doing in recent years to hinder the confiscations by the Guardia Urbana. In pairs, the manteros cannot confront the municipal police, but their escape seems easier and less conspicuous.
The key has always been to move as quickly as possible. And La Rambla, being under construction, is now a very bad place to run. For some time now, some of these vendors even choose to stand alone, without any other companion to back them up. This is what happens, for example, in the corridors of the Sants metro station, where this summer it is not very difficult to find Spanish national team t-shirts of Lamine Yamal for just 15 euros. The Spain kits are the star product these weeks, especially during the World Cup celebration and even more so after the title was won by la Roja . It is a low-cost souvenir that barely takes up space in tourists’ suitcases.
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One of the main objectives of the municipal government of Mayor Jaume Collboni and his Endreça plan is to put an end to all manifestations of unauthorized street vending in Barcelona’s public spaces. Their stance has nothing to do with that of their predecessor, Ada Colau. The current socialist administration understands that, besides harming the city’s merchants, these irregular activities tarnish the streets and squares and also create a call effect that feeds incivility, the feeling that anything goes in Barcelona.
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These past weeks, the presence of street vendors selling mojitos and cans of beer on Barcelona’s beaches is also much lower than in previous summers, at least so far. Also, for several summers now, the presence of bicitaxis has been rather anecdotal. Nor are there as many pareo sellers along the coast these days as in other years. However, the presence of those renting very shabby umbrellas is increasing, especially on Sant Sebastià beach. During these hot days, the sun feels more aggressive than ever.
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