When Grief Pays: Sombre & Mournful, But Businesses Smiled at Asantemaa’s “Doteyie”, Fuelling Funeral Tourism

Although Kumasi may have been draped in black and red symbolizing their grief and sadness for the loss of the Asantehemaa Nana Konadu Yiadom III, behind the sombre and mournful mood, the city’s economy and beyond wore a radiant smile.

Amid the funeral, known in the Asantes’ local parlance as “Doteyie”, businesses far and near experienced a windfall despite the grief. The Doteyie turned what is also known as the Garden City into the busiest marketplace in Ghana,

For four straight days, mourning and money danced to the same tune of the funeral dirges. Ghana’s second-largest city throbbed with an unusual kind of commerce, and the grief literally paid handsomely.

Many items and products, which hitherto were in low demand, became gold in just a twinkle of an eye. Same applies to some services. Let’s take a look at some of them;

Black Cloth (Kuntunkuni) Became Black Gold  

Traditionally, the black cloth, locally called kuntunkuni, was the official dress code for mourners. It automatically became one of the items in high demand for the week. Traders of the cloth at Kejetia and Adum reported record-breaking sales as mourners and visitors scrambled for appropriate attire.

Prices of the once modest fabric saw an appreciable increase, with some sellers confessing they cleared out stock that usually lasted months. Within the days of the funeral, it became a goldmine for the traders in Kumasi who cashed in significantly boosting their businesses.

The Business of Barbers Boom

One group of service providers who have enjoyed this period of mourning are barbers in Kumasi. As required traditionally, many of the women in Kumasi, depending on your status were required to pay homage in the traditional “dansikran” haircut. The “dansikran” haircut, where the hair of the women was shaved and darkened.  

Ahead of and during the funeral, barbering shops became as busy as markets. Clippers buzzed day and night, with some barbers charging a premium for “express cuts.”

For once, women who dreaded cutting their “precious” hair had a reason to do so, and it was an economic boom.

Kitchens on Fire, Food Vendors Smile

With over thousands of people gathering at the Manhyia palace from Sunday to Thursday, one thing was constant. Food, drinks, and water could never be taken from the equation, although it was a period of mourning.

Food vendors, chop bars, and roadside sellers turned grief into a feast. With thousands trooping into Kumasi, demand for fufu, waakye, roasted plantain, and bottled water shot through the roof. Vendors near the Manhyia Palace could confess they were really in business.  barely had time to breathe between sales.

Aside from the unofficial vendors serving the mass mourners, the special guests invited and service providers of the funeral were definitely served, and that was a market for restaurants and catering services. Whichever company got the contract hit a jackpot.

Transport Demand Hikes: From Tro-tros to Taxis to Flights

It was also a “cocoa season” in the transport sector, not only for those in Kumasi and the Ashanti Region but the entire country. At least every region in the country was well-represented at the funeral.

Getting to Kumasi during the period was just half the battle, and getting to the funeral grounds was another. Transport operators made sure it was not lost on them. Bus terminals overflowed, fares shot up, and taxis and motorbikes raked in small fortunes ferrying mourners through traffic-choked roads.

Airlines, too, cashed in. Domestic flights into Kumasi were booked out days in advance as visitors from Accra, Tamale, Takoradi, and even abroad rushed in to witness history.

Hotels, Tailors, and the Hidden Boomers

The accommodation business, hotels and guest houses, saw a significant increase in demand as visitors and even tourists were present and needed a place to lay their heads to witness the event.

Tailors worked around the clock to stitch black outfits in record time. Even photographers, videographers, bloggers, and mobile money agents saw their fair share of windfalls. In Kumasi that week, there was no such thing as a “small job.”

When Funerals Become Tourism

Beyond the immediate gains recorded by businesses, the spectacle of the Asantehemaa’s funeral reiterates a bigger opportunity for funeral tourism. The beautiful cultural display, the history told, among others, make funerals a sight to behold for many tourists.

As it was evident during the funeral, Kumasi hosted thousands, not only from Ashanti but across Ghana and the diaspora. These mourners became tourists, spending on transport, lodging, food, and culture.

The late Asantehemaa may have departed, but her Doteyie revealed how deeply intertwined Ghana’s cultural traditions are with its economy. The black cloth, the shaved heads, the food and drinks, the taxis and flights all proved that even in mourning, business never dies.

The Bottomline

If Kumasi’s economic windfall is anything to go by, then it is time for policymakers to rethink funerals not just as cultural obligations but as potential engines of growth for the economy, especially the tourism sector.

With better planning, branding, and investment, Ghana could turn these cultural spectacles into deliberate tourism drivers, attracting not just mourners but tourists eager to witness the grandeur of not only the Asante tradition but also the rich cultural heritage of other parts of the country.

Indeed, grief pays, and the recent Asantehemaa’s funeral is Ghana’s latest evidence.

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