Pat-Ay Mart — A Local Shop that Accepts Steem as Payment for Goods

Some people do ask why I make purchases in one particular place. The answer is that the person selling is a Steemian and accepts Steem payment. Others still ask, 'Doesn't the Bible say you should love your neighbour?' Am I also not your neighbour? I'll reply, 'Yes, you are, but I have favourite neighbours who accept steems when I'm out of cash.' What's this steam all about? And that's how I signed up two users and made their place my favourite shop.

This place is called Pat-Ay Mart Mart, a shop run by two Steemians who work together in ensuring the smooth running of their supermarket, which is fully stocked with goods. This place is located beside Ghitto Road, which is a street in Ifa Atai Small Junction, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.

If you're in Uyo and you're coming from Ibiaku junction, the supermarket is before the small junction or before the Total fuel station, which is a landmark used to describe the small junction of Ifa Atai. If you're coming from Oron Rd, you'll have to pass the big junction and the small junction of Ifa Atai before reaching this place.

Any motorists you see will definitely know Ghitto Road, and note, it's not inside the street; it's after the street. You'll see lines of shops after the street. The second to last shop is where Pat-Ay Mart is located.

You can use this Google link to guide you through. I was able to map it on Steem-atlas. It's accessible and notable. One landmark you can use in identifying the place is a beacon stone and an umbrella in front of the shop. There's only one umbrella in this line of shops.

The reason why they have refused to make a billboard design to attach to the shop is because of how closely packed the place is. They planned on doing so after the expansion of their shop next year in January. They'll be renting the other shop beside them next year. So that's where this shop is located.

This shop has a long-standing history of being run by an individual until the man got married to his beautiful wife. They run the business together as business partners. The founder of this shop, which became my favourite, is a Steemian called @ay-mart and came into existence in the year 2018 when he was still struggling as a bachelor. He used this to keep himself busy while teaching in a government school. His wife @pat-enterprise joined him in 2023, as that's when they got married. They are currently running the business as founders and managers.

As business partners, they also have other engagements which demand their time. But on a normal day, they do give themselves shifts on who watches the shop, even in the presence of a sales boy whom they keep in the shop in cases when they are unavailable.

@ay-mart as the founder, is known for his supervision activity. He ensures he checks the general running of the business on account levels to know whether they are running a loss or not. Aside from the checking account of his shop, he does the *marketing survey and retailer purchase from wholesalers. He has a vehicle that helps in doing this work without having to pay for transportation. So this is his own main activity as a business partner with his wife, which he's so good at. His wife's duty is to stack these goods her husband purchases and keep records of the quantity and wholesale price.

From the wholesale price, she deduces the price each item would be sold for in the shop, relieving her husband of the stress that comes with this. Since she's new to the place, she usually asks her husband for price updates. Another activity she does is to check for expired products so as not to sell expired goods to her customers. She also supervises the sales boy they kept to manage the shop for them. They just have 1 employer, as they are already capable of running their business.

It's just a three-way shop system with first space for stacking major products like wine, eatables, fridges, etc... In this space, they also have a corner where the sales person stays to attend to people that comes inside the shop. This is where payment is done and services rendered.

_{The cashier's slot}

Creams, deodorants and hair products section	Wine sections
body wash and treatment section	Edible foods category
Drinks section	Women's fittings

The second part of the shop is where perishable foods like bread, sachet water, household equipment and others are kept for visibility. Since they don't have an atmosphere where bread can be preserved without direct air for a long time, they choose to make a second segment of their shop so that the bread can be sampled and exposed to direct air.

Bread shelf	Corner for sachet water

_{Front view of the second segment}

Also, it's kept at a corner, close to the entrance of the shop for visibility, as bread doesn't last long. It gets spoilt easily. So sampling it outside allows customers to consume the bread fast so it won't have to stay in the shop for a long time.

The third segment of the shop is where their chillers and other equipment like buckets are kept. There are seats outside the shop and a POS stand by the entrance, close to the road. So it's not as facilitated as other shops where there are toilet and generator house are.

Chiller	corner for mops and football

_{Seating area}

Talking about their electrical system, they don't depend on electricity to run at night and during the day. They depend on natural light during the day and turn on their solar bulb at night to illuminate the place. So in summary, they don't spend on fuel to produce light at night, as the solar battery is charged during the day.

_{Their solar fan to ward off heat}

Their security system is tight as well because these days, most robbers use ceilings to break into one's shop to steal things. They welded iron to prevent direct entrance into the shop. So their security is very tight. You can't break in through the main entrance unless you use an acid to melt the metal.

_{Ceiling is sealed with iron bars}

They actually stay in a place close to the tar road. Their environment is quite noisy and they lack the presence of good network connection once you enter the shop. You can only access it comfortably when you step out of the shop.

They have sections in their shop where each product is kept or sampled. Let's take, for example, The wine section. This is actually a section where wines are kept – wines of different varieties and brands. I think the wine occupies a large section in their shop if I'm to rate. They have products like 👇👇.

Like I said earlier, expired goods are kept in check, and they ensure the quality of their products is top-notch. How? By selecting their marketplaces, purchasing fresh goods that haven't been on deck for a long period. This is to prevent the quality control team from closing down their space. These are a few products sold here and their prices.

_{Edible foods in buvketst}

One thing I love about the employee is that he helps in creating general awareness on a particular type of product when customers come into the shop. This awareness he creates gives customers the information that a particular good or product is sold in the shop.

This is a local shop, and the possibility of creating discounts is slim because it's a closed market, not an open market where products can be bargained for. The only products they give discounts on are their wine, groundnuts, packets of soft drinks and creams

The discount on each of these products mentioned above is 5%. Meaning, if a good were to be sold at 2000 naira, it would be sold at 1900 naira. If a bottle of wine is to be sold at the rate of 10000, the discount would be 9500.Their discount has price ranges. Products from 20k to 100k can be given on discount. Any product below or above this scale doesn't work in their shop.

For example:

They are always attentive to their customers' needs and try to treat every customer with respect. There was a time when a customer got engaged over the price at which their product was sold. Instead of fighting back with words, they calmed the situation by reasoning with the customer that retailers differ in terms of done products, depending on where they were purchased.

I may have purchased a bottle of beer at 700 naira and decided to sell it at 800 naira, making 100 naira my gain. Another may have bought it at 800 naira and decided to sell it for 900 naira. We have price differences depending on where we bought our goods. The customer came to see the argument as right. He purchased the product peacefully, as the thought of paying transportation fare to where it would be sold at a cheaper rate wasn't a wise thought.

One unique thing about this shop is that they both accept steems as payment, as they are steemians. So if you're in Uyo axis, specifically the Ifa Atai axis, whatever you want is there, and their prices are moderate. Since they accept STEEM as a medium for payment, you can always transfer to the husband's account. 👇👇

Whatever you want from a local shop is there except for some foodstuffs like plantain, crayfish, etc... Your satisfaction in price and quality service is their priority.