“What, opening a convenience store? Selling daily necessities like tobacco, alcohol, sugar, and tea? There are a lot of those in this county, will you be able to make money?” Su Mian’s eldest aunt had also wanted to open one previously, but in the end, she did not. There were already three to four of them nearby. In the end, they shut down within a few days. To put it bluntly, there were too many convenience stores and business was not good.
“Indeed, the average convenience store doesn’t really make money. It’s alright if you are not in urgent need of money and are willing to suffer for a bit.” Su Mian’s second aunt also disagreed, her youngest sister was clearly in need of money.
Speaking of the convenience store, Su Mian’s youngest aunt was also intrigued, “Su Mian said that our convenience store would be different from the other ones in the neighbourhood. She said that aside from daily necessities like tobacco, alcohol, sugar, and tea, we would also sell vegetables, fruits, pork, rice, noodles, and oil. All daily necessities that you would want to buy would be available. Xiao Mian had said that this was called a one-stop shop and if customers came here, they would not need to go elsewhere!”
Eldest Aunt’s eyes lit up, “This is a good idea! Sometimes, when I go to the vegetable market and buy a bunch of things, I still have to go to the convenience store to buy soy sauce and salt. This would save time.”
Second Aunt’s eyes widened, “Little Sister, you see, I am idle and all I do now is cook for my children. Can you let me be a business partner? I will ask your brother-in-law to give us fresh pork and ribs everyday!”
Eldest Aunt was anxious when she heard this. She was too embarrassed to speak directly just now, but Second Sister had taken the lead, “Me too, I am also idle!” Su Mian’s eldest aunt had long wanted to do something to support the family, so that her words would carry more weight in the family.
When these two said this, Youngest Aunt did not know what to do and looked at Su Mian.
Su Mian was amused, “No need to fear having so many people, just fear not having enough manpower. If you all become business partners, then your relationship would become better. With more manpower, the store can be bigger and both uncles can help to select and sell the goods. However, first you will need to discuss clearly the division of labour and income distribution. Even close brothers must settle accounts clearly to avoid having disputes over money later on.”
Su Mian designed a convenience store for them according to the business philosophy of the supermarkets in her previous life. However, because the equipment was not as advanced, she changed it to a self-service supermarket where they would pay at the checkout before leaving.
The items they sold would range from daily necessities to fruits, vegetables, rice, noodles, and oil to include everything people needed in a day. One afternoon, Su Mian discussed with her few aunts the marketing of the convenience store and had also found some business for her father. All the shelves inside would be made by Su Jiang Hai.
In this era, businesses were still relatively scattered and sellers sold one type of thing. Su Mian had introduced the philosophy of later supermarkets and as soon as she said this, her aunts all thought this was feasible.
The three sisters discussed and even chose a name, calling it the Three Sisters Self-Service Supermarket.
Grandma Su was so happy that she could not close her mouth and the more she looked at her granddaughter Su Mian, the more satisfied she was. She sat on the edge of the brick bed and smoked a big pipe. She was just too old; if it had been eight or ten years earlier, she would also have wanted to join the business.
Finally, they finished negotiations in the afternoon and Youngest Aunt’s heart finally felt settled. Su Mian had been right. For her to take action, open up a supermarket, and wait for it to take off, it would not be a problem for her to raise her two children by herself.
After discussing her youngest daughter’s matters, Grandma Su brought another matter to attention, “Since all three of you are here, help your third brother plant seeds these few days. He’s having trouble with his eyes lately and is seeing double.”
In this era, farming still relied on livestock and manpower. Plowing used donkeys or horses while planting seeds, fertilising, covering the soil, and stamping it down still used manpower. The spring rains were as expensive as oil and there was heavy rain a couple of days prior. After a few days, the ground would dry up and the seedlings would not sprout well.
Apricot Village had plenty of land, seven to eight mu of land per person. Those with little manpower at home would worry about not being able to finish their work.
