06:30 · Opening1/6
“Two cartons, I'll pay Saturday.”
A regular stall owner takes two cartons of noodles and a bale of sugar. It goes into a worn credit book. Her third tab this month, and last Saturday's is still unpaid.
Illustration · you may have lived it
One day in a busy shop
Swipe to see where the money goes.
09:15 · A customer2/6
“2-litre oil?” Sold out.
The buyer goes next door. You were sure there was a carton in the back. Only the empty box. A lost sale, and a customer learning another route.
11:00 · The sales rep3/6
“Prices are up again.”
Cigarettes, condensed milk and detergent creep up. Shelf prices are still the old ones. The margin per item thins out and nobody tells you.
15:00 · You're at the market4/6
Staff sell a carton at the single-pack price.
Or give a regular buyer the wholesale price. The price list lives in your head, not theirs.
Day 30 · Counting5/6
Shelves full, cash thin.
Time to restock, not enough money. Some is stuck in customer credit, some in slow items in the corner. How much exactly? Nobody knows.
6/6
The money isn't gone. It's stuck.
In unchased credit, in dead stock, in items missing when asked for. And the cash book never shows it.
See where it's stuck ↓
