Ahmed Stores

Ahmed Stores is located at house number 56 in Kutaga Village. Alangulam is the bigger town where we go to do all our buying for the shop supplies. It is a very small village here, so every single person knows exactly where we are located. We sell all the basics that people need for their homes every day. Things like sugar, loose tea, some pulses, and usually some small snacks or biscuits for the kids. The shop is actually part of our house. We just converted the front room into a store area many years ago. It can feel a bit cramped when more than three or four people come in at the same time. We have a big, heavy wooden counter that has been there since my father's time. It has got plenty of scratches and marks on it now, but it is still very sturdy. We don't have any fancy lights or glass display cases. Just some simple shelves we built ourselves from scrap wood. Sometimes we run out of certain things because the supply truck from the town didn't arrive on time. The local people understand how it is and they don't complain. We keep a handwritten ledger for those neighbors who prefer to pay at the end of the month. There is a lot of trust involved in how we do things. The village is usually very quiet, except for when the local school lets out in the afternoon. Then we get very busy with all the children wanting sweets.