A grocery store where you can buy beef, hilsha portions for Tk10
At Jewel’s grocery store, customers can buy exactly as much as they need
With the ever-increasing prices for essentials, buying daily necessities for a few weeks or days can be a significant burden for low-income families.
"Low-income people like us cannot afford beef or hilsha fish even once in six months. During the peak hilsha season, everyone happily eats the national fish. We do not even dare to buy hilsha for Tk700-800 per kg even after saving money for months," said Md Saddam, who works as a security guard at a garment factory in Dakshinkhan, Dhaka.
But Shahadat Hossain Jewel, through his grocery store, has taken it upon himself to make lives easier for his needy neighbours.
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Pieces of hilsha are available at Jewel's shop for Tk10, packets of beef also start at Tk10.
"Now I can often buy a small amount of beef or hilsha and eat as much as I need. Even if I have guests to feed, I don't have to be embarrassed. There is an opportunity to take any amount of meat, fish, or other items from Jewel's shop. This is a big support," Saddam added.
It's a garment holiday. Patwari Stores in Fayedabad, Dakshinkhan has started getting more customers since the morning. At this shop, all essential commodities, starting from oil, sugar, fish, meat, rice, and lentils, are available in the exact quantity that customers need.
Patwari Stores offer a variety of products like sugar or salt for Tk1, puffed rice for Tk1, ginger, turmeric or pepper for Tk2, tea leaves for Tk3, and cold drinks or cooking oil for Tk5.
"I have packaged these items in this way to reassure the customers. I have been in the grocery business since 2007, and since then, I've offered the option to buy as much as everyone needs in my shop," said Jewel.
But many people are shy and could not ask for less than a certain amount because most shops in our country do not sell daily necessities below a certain amount. Buying a lot of things with little money in the pocket can be stressful for many people, he added.
"I see many people who go to the market to buy groceries and do not have the money to buy fish. And when they enter the fish market, they cannot buy grocery items. That is why people should have the opportunity to meet their daily needs with little money," Jewel further said.
Jewel's family are locals of Dakshinkhan. In the beginning, he conducted business with his father and elder brother at Gulshan. He initially aimed to settle in Australia after studying up to HSC and even prepared to take the IELTS exam for some time.
However, due to personal reasons, he had to drop that plan and started his own grocery store just outside his house. During the pandemic, he took the initiative to sell products in small packs after witnessing the financial suffering of people around him.
While this arrangement has been in place in Patwari Stores for a few years, it only recently gained widespread recognition when a blogger's video highlighted the uniqueness of Jewel's business. Now, people from many surrounding areas are coming to see the shop out of curiosity.
Many are expressing gratitude to the shopkeeper besides buying necessary items. Jewel's sales have also increased, and he views his business as a form of service to humanity. Jewel's father, Hanif Patwari, is also proud of his son's initiative.
Elderly Rasheda, who came to the shop with her grandson to buy Tk20 worth of oil, spoke highly of Jewel, saying, "today, I have been a customer of Jewel's shop for seven or eight years. No customer has to return empty-handed from here. Jewel offers many products that meet the needs of people; no other shop offers that. If you ask for ginger worth Tk10, no other shop will give you that. But Jewel will give you ginger for Tk5. I always tell him that you are doing good for people, and Allah will bless you."
Jewel recounted an incident from before the pandemic, "once a day labourer came to my shop at the end of the month. He had very little money with him. He was shy and could not even tell me about his predicament. He hesitated and asked, 'Brother, how much is the minimum amount of sugar that you sell? And do you have small packets of powdered milk?'
"But at that time, there were no Tk10-20 powdered milk packets in the store. I asked him how much he needed. He said that he needs to feed his baby, so he does not need that much. Then I gave him sugar worth Tk10 and opened a 200g packet of powdered milk and measured out the milk for Tk30. He also wanted palm candy. I opened a half-kilogram packet and measured Tk10 worth of palm candy. Within Tk50, he could take food for three to four days for the child. That day, the man was very happy to buy everything he needed. He thanked me repeatedly, which pumped up my motivation," Jewel said.
He gets up early every morning to sell fish and meat by himself. Apart from hilsha, he tries to keep various types of fish, including rui, tilapia, and pabda in the shop. Besides beef, he is also planning to start selling chicken.
When asked whether there is confusion in terms of sales or profit while selling products in small amounts, he said, "I calculate the profit on average. Different classes of customers come here. Not everyone takes sugar for Tk1 or oil for Tk5. Most of them buy in kilograms. If some of them buy a small amount, it is not much of a problem. If a company can make a profit by selling Tk1 candy, I also can make a profit from selling products for Tk1-2. Measuring and packing it separately is a bit time-consuming. But if you think of benefiting people, you can do anything. The will is mainly what is required."
When asked whether nearby shopkeepers are also enthusiastic after seeing such an initiative by Jewel, he said that he has not seen anyone taking such an initiative yet. In the beginning, the nearby shopkeepers used to laugh at him. Ignoring them, he continued his work.
Bismillah General Store is another grocery store near Jewel's. Farzana Bobby, the owner, said, "If the customer wants, I can give them any size according to their needs. But I do not have the time to sell all the things in separate packages like Jewel Bhai."
Jewel dreams that such initiatives be undertaken in all parts of the country one day. If people have the opportunity to buy as much as they need, waste can be reduced greatly.
