Chao News client reporter Xu Ting
"Boss, is this 2 yuan a piece or a pair?"
"One by one!"
In many people's memories, there is the shadow of a "2 yuan store", and all kinds of small goods are placed on the shelves, dazzling. The goods are like the name of the store, 2 yuan is the majority, mixed with slightly more expensive ones, and it has become a good place for residents to "Taobao" in the early years.
Online shopping is becoming more convenient, and the "$2 store" is gradually fading. On January 3, Chao News reporters visited several 2 yuan stores in Hangzhou, some of which are now called "2 yuan supermarket", the cheapest goods in the store are 1 yuan, and the most expensive are two or three hundred.
Today's "supermarket from 2 yuan" (puzzle). Photo by Chao News reporter Xu Ting
Grocery store has everything you need
You can find old objects from your childhood memories
At the entrance of the "2 yuan supermarket" on Jianguo North Road, safety helmets, windshields, duffel bags and other goods are neatly stacked, and daily necessities such as pots and pans, scarves and bags are placed in the store.
Occasionally, a few customers come in for a walk. The owner, Lao Zou, sat behind the counter, swiping his mobile phone and glancing at the surveillance display on the wall from time to time.
On the shelves here, you can find many childhood memories: the plastic mirror hanging at my grandmother's house, the small clam oil, the food cover to prevent mosquitoes, the old man's small notebook for copying the phone, and the crystal ball that I gave to friends when I was a child......
Lao Zou is a native of Lishui, and this store on Jianguo North Road has been open for 9 years, "Customers generally buy daily necessities that are about to be used immediately, and emergency things." ”
In the store, a customer was taking his granddaughter who had just finished school to pick up stationery, and the child looked around and bought a box of highlighters.
Another customer was passing by and came in to have a look, she often travels, and she saw a hook on the Internet that can stick a portable laundry bag to the wall, and wanted to buy the same model, "but I couldn't find it in the store." ”
The shelves in the store are plentiful. Photo by Chao News reporter Xu Ting
On Qingchun Road, Aunt Chen's "2 yuan supermarket" is close to West Lake, and tourists often come to ask if there is any water for sale, so she simply puts a drink cabinet at the door.
The goods outside the door are also seasonal, "hats and scarves are placed in winter and spring, and drink cabinets are placed in summer and autumn." She pointed to the toys at the entrance, "It's a holiday, and adults buy more toys for children." ”
The goods are full, and there is no need for computer accounting, Aunt Chen can't count how many kinds of goods there are in the store, and each item is labeled with a price tag, which is already a Xi in their industry, so they are afraid of confusion.
Every inch of space is put to good use, neatly arranged, and restocked when something is missing, "It's impossible to say what I don't buy here?" ”
From "2 yuan store" to "2 yuan supermarket"
Behind the change in product selection is always affordable
"Has your shop shrunk?" a regular customer walked into Zou Jianou's shop and asked about the changes in the store.
Zou Jianou's shop, which is located on Wulin Road, plays pop music in the store, which weakens the sound of traffic on the road outside.
Zou Jianou's old and new store. Photo by Chao News reporter Xu Ting
A few years ago, due to the low rent, Zou Jianou rented two storefronts on this road. Recently, the rent has risen, and in order to save costs, in December 2023, he changed to rent a single façade next door and moved the goods over.
"At that time, business was easy to do, and everything was easy to sell. "I heard that a relative made a lot of money by opening a 2 yuan store, and around 2010, he came to Hangzhou from Lishui and opened a store, and the unit price of goods did not exceed 10 yuan. "It's all haberdashery, and as soon as customers buy it, more than 10 pieces are picked. ”
Aunt Chen's grocery store used to be called a "2 yuan store". At that time, the goods that were sold for 2 yuan were sold at about 1.5 yuan, "Now these things are sold for more than two yuan." ”
Year after year, the stores are watching the sales, and some cheap things are of poor quality, and customers don't want them, so they choose better quality and higher prices to buy.
The name of "2 yuan store" gradually became "2 yuan supermarket". ”
"Give yourself some leeway! You can sell something for 10,000 yuan. Lao Zou said.
Some of the cheap items in the store (puzzles). Photo by Chao News reporter Xu Ting
In these shops, the most expensive is two or three hundred suitcases, the cheapest goods are one yuan, including bottle stoppers, plastic planer knives, paper towels, ear pickers, and two or three yuan sewing kits, ropes, plastic combs, tapes, brushes, etc......
By the end of the day, there were a little more customers. A big brother in the Northeast settled the bill with a bag of laundry detergent for three or four yuan, and when he heard the boss talking about the history of the 2 yuan store, he added: "There are still less than 10 yuan in our hometown." ”
Several workers passed by in groups, exchanging ideas: "Are there any cheap plastic cups?" and "This sock only costs three pieces." ”
A customer bought a sewing kit, etc., and she fumbled for small bills and coins in her wallet, and paid a total of 7 yuan......
Aunt Chen thinks that the advantage of this type of grocery store is that the store decoration is simple, there is no publicity, the additional cost is low, and the profit margin is much more flexible, "For example, if the same thing is sold for 15 yuan in other stores, we can make money by selling 13 yuan." ”
"Mass consumption is about affordability, right?" she said.
Customers shop in-store. Photo by Chao News reporter Xu Ting
At its peak, you have to queue up at the checkout
Can merchants and customers go both ways?
In the glory days of the "2 yuan store", there was a queue at the checkout. With small profits and quick turnover, some people relied on the revenue of the store to renovate the house in their hometown, complete the marriage and have children......
Many people who open stores know each other, Zou Jianou mentioned, "The owner of the 2 yuan store on Jianguo North Road is my uncle." ”
Uncle Lao Zou sighed with emotion: "You young people buy it on your mobile phone, and no matter how cheap and beautiful the physical store is, you don't come." "He's almost 60 years old, and he's thinking about working for a few more years, and then he's going to retire.
With the development of online shopping, the sales of offline grocery stores have decreased, and some merchants will also choose to choose online to buy things. Zou Jianou is one of them, he feels that online shopping is worry-free, and it can be delivered to his doorstep.
In the past, when business was good, Lao Zou had to hire a clerk to help, but now in order to save costs, he sits alone in the store from more than 8 o'clock in the morning to more than 10 o'clock in the evening, "The time is not long, how do you make money?"
There is a drink cabinet in front of Aunt Chen's shop. Photo by Chao News reporter Xu Ting
After a long time in business, I am not very willing to help others work, so it is better to open a store freely, and Aunt Chen persevered. "You don't know that sitting here alone for a day is very tiring. "She and her husband will change shifts and take turns looking at the store.
Zou Jian'ou works harder, and his store is often open until one o'clock in the morning, "just guard this store, take one step at a time, and make a little money." ”
Can the persistence of the shopkeeper get the two-way rush of customers?
An old customer in Zou Jianou's shop, passing by, will come in to take a look, she thinks it is more convenient to buy things in the store, and she buys daily necessities when she sees them.
Convenience and affordability are the perceptions of many customers. During the visit, many customers mentioned that they saw this store when they passed by, and it was estimated that the store was not expensive, so they walked in to have a look.
Master Xu, an online car-hailing driver, buys all the daily necessities of his wife, and he is very puzzled: "Is there still a 2 yuan store now? Is it all 2 yuan, or is it more than 2 yuan?" After thinking for a while, he asked himself, "Of course I am willing to buy it if it is cheap, but it is better to sell it for more than 2 yuan, and there are more varieties, and we also have more choices." ”
Do you still visit the supermarket from 2 yuan?Do you have any stories to share?Welcome to leave a message.
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