This was written after my third visit to the book store. There is a growing demand for the books in the school where my uncle teaches. It was apparent that the orders were placed after demand has increased to a significant quantity. On every visit, I am exposed to new experiences; there are many lessons to learn in the market place.
On each of these visits, the books I purchased was never less than 50 copies. They were different books, however. All school texts. I visit the store without any bag nor any container. How do I pack up such large quantity of books?
Photo source: Freepik
'Here is your receipt', a worker in the store said after totalling my purchase cost and encircling it on the booklet from which she tore the receipt.
'OK. Thank you', I responded.
'Pay to the woman at the counter', she said when pointing to the makeshift counter made of a pile of books demarcating the store into two. The area beyond the demarcation after the entrance is accessible only by the store workers.
When I returned from the counter, my supply was enclosed tightly in a carton. This was done based on my agreement to the sales rep's proposal to have a fellow on standby around the entrance do the packaging.
The bookstore has a robust value chain. There are folks seated on wheelbarrows near the main entrance. There are some folks in the area foregrounding the main store holding tapes and holding (and standing) on white twines. Then there are the sales reps.
After an order is served, the folks with tapes and twines package the goods. Those with wheelbarrows help transport the package to the point where mobility is aided by a vehicle to the buyer's destination. Each of these folks benefit from the returns obtained from the sales made in the store. Talk about cutting down unemployment and idleness.
Another fascinating experience was that the prices changed, rather spontaneously. Two days back I purchased some books at a certain price. On this visit, the price increased by over 15%. This was followed by the announcement of the price of a cardboard sheet which was sold N50; the price increased by 100% over the course of less than a year. You can imagine what the reaction from other customers like myself was like.
Lastly, I was faced with the fact that it is inappropriate to assume a thing about a large group based on an experience with a single member of that group. The sales rep who attended to me was welcoming, gentle, and hospitable. Her smile was welcoming and the calmness in her voice was appealing. In my head I considered the opinion that a female makes a better sales rep than a male. Shortly after that assumption, a lady which seemed like the second to the book store owner spoke out in anger in response to a customer. Though, it seemed there was a misunderstanding between them which seemed lik the customer was at fault. The personality precedes gender, in this case, when talking about who makes a better sales rep.
There is just so much to learn from the book store and in the market place. All I have shared, all three parts of these series, is just a fraction of the entire lessons obtainable out there.
Part 1: Of Unwritten Principles
Part 2: Of Unwritten Principles 2