Ayisha Traders

We've been here on Ponnani Road in Vaniamkulam for a good while now. It started small, just a few things on the shelves, but over the years we ended up carrying more stuff because people kept asking for it. The shop opens early in the morning when the street is still quiet and the air isn't too hot yet. Vaniamkulam is a busy place during the day, especially with the traffic moving toward the main junctions. We mostly spend our time unloading boxes, checking what’s running low, and making sure the floor stays clean enough for people to walk through. It's not a fancy place by any means. There’s some dust that comes in from the road, and sometimes the fans don't keep it as cool as we’d like in the afternoons. Most of our customers are locals who live just a few minutes away. They stop by for their daily needs, maybe a bit of grain or some household items they forgot to get earlier. We know most of the faces that walk through the door. Sometimes we chat about the weather or how the town is changing, but mostly we just get them what they need and they go on their way. It’s a lot of standing on your feet and moving heavy bags around. By the time we close up and pull the shutters down, we're tired, but that’s just how it is. We’ll be back tomorrow to do it all over again.