Three Months Later
Katniss said goodbye to a regular customer as she walked out the door who had come by to pick up a loaf of Ezekiel bread and a box of raspberry and rosehip tea, leaving the store empty except for Johanna, Sae, Beetee, and herself. It was two in the afternoon, the time of day when they were usually slow, but not normally this slow.
Mellark's had been open for three weeks. Katniss strolled to the front of the store and looked out the front window. The new store across the street had a busy parking lot. In the last few weeks they still saw the regulars who ate at the café, picked up groceries, or medicines, but the people who only dropped by every once in a while, she hasn't seen them at all.
She could tell that her friends were worried. Tips were down in the café. Beetee had transferred a few prescriptions. Katniss had overheard her staff as they tried to whisper their worries between themselves in the corners of the store.
It was time to give a pep talk and now was as good a time as any to give it. Beetee was restocking vitamin supplements and Johanna and Sae were off talking in the kitchen. They'd easily hear if anyone entered the store due to the bell on the handle.
"Hey, everybody! Grab a cup of coffee or tea and meet me in the café in five minutes!" she called.
Katniss went back to her office and grabbed a white board that she had stuck in the corner and a marker. Then she sauntered over to the café and prepared herself a mug of jasmine green tea before taking a seat at one of the empty tables. Beetee, Johanna, and Sae joined her a few minutes later.
"Okay! I just want to address the elephant in the room. You don't need to worry about how slow it is right now. We will be fine."
Johanna tried to interrupt, "But–"
Katniss held up a hand to stop her. "Things are only slow at the moment because of the novelty of the new store. People will soon remember what we offer them. We offer them personalized service!"
"But, some of their prices are lower," Beetee rebutted.
Katniss agreed, "Yes, their prices may be slightly lower, but we offer them more. We provide value because we are willing to go the extra mile to meet their needs. People will remember that." She gathered a breath then asked the group, "How do we add more value in what we do?"
"I'll cook meals to order," Sae offered. "If a meat dish on the menu needs to be vegetarian or vegan, they need only ask and I'll adjust the recipe. Mellark's only has a deli with a few self-service tables – they don't make things to order unless you provide plenty of notice."
"Yes!" Katniss picked up her marker and wrote, "Meals made to order" on the white board. "What else?"
"I consult with customers who desire naturopathic remedies to understand not only the main issue they want to address but to gain understanding of any underlying issues to ensure we provide them the best natural solution to their problem," Beetee suggested.
"Great one!" Katniss wrote down, "Provides consultation on naturopathic medicine."
"We'll work with our suppliers to special order products customers are looking for," Johanna added.
"Awesome." Katniss wrote, "Special orders to meet customer's needs".
"We supply products made and grown locally whenever possible," said Sae.
Ideas as to why Everdeen's was special continued to roll off her friends' tongues. Katniss wrote each one of them down. She felt their optimism growing, which was necessary if they were going to survive this slow patch.
"This is a great list. I'm hanging this in our break room as a reminder. Meanwhile, remember these when you talk to customers. This is the value we can communicate so they realize that Everdeen's is where they want to shop and eat." The bell ringed. "Well, we better get back to it. We have a customer."
Katniss walked the board to the break room and carefully hung it. When she came back out into the store, she saw her employees laughing. You could sense their renewed optimism. She just wished she felt the same.
That night she found herself taking up Serene-Pilot's offer to vent. She had tried to talk about it with Gale, but he brushed off her concerns when he came home that night. He had worked late again and he was obviously tired. At least Effie, the firm's executive assistant, had given her a ring to warn that Gale was going to be late. It had been considerate of him to ask her to call. Katniss just wished he'd been willing to talk.
She opened up her e-mail and saw that Serene-Pilot was not online so she composed an e-mail.
Good Evening Serene-Pilot,
I'm taking you up on your offer of lending an ear. I hope you don't regret it. ;)
The new competitor to my store opened and my business has slowed considerably. I could tell that my staff was growing increasingly worried today so I held an impromptu meeting with those working so I could encourage them and show them our value. We developed a list of why our store is different from the competition. Points we can remember as we talk to customers, ensuring we communicate this value. It was exactly what they needed to hear. Afterward, conversations turned from hushed whispers to friendly banter. I just wish someone could give me the same pep talk because I am starting to worry.
This store was my parent's dream and I feel like if I let it fail I'll have failed them. It's really all I have left of them. I've never told you this, but I took over my parent's store shortly after college, which I never planned to do. I always figured my sister, who from the time she was a little girl followed my mother around as she prepared ointments and tinctures, would eventually take over. Then on a cold winter night when it was very icy, a car driving too fast lost control and hit my parents' car, killing my father and Prim instantly. My mother came to consciousness a few days later, but after she learned about Daddy and Prim, she went to sleep and never woke again. The doctors said a clot broke free and caused an embolism but I sometimes think that she died of a broken heart. That happened ten years ago.
This heavy feeling is just settling over my heart right now. I know they say that business is business but for me it's also very personal.
Thank you for listening. I should be getting you chapter 6 in another couple of days.
Your friend,
Warrior-Woman
She clicked send. Katniss powered down her computer and went to bed, finally able to rest because she had given voice to her feelings.
The following morning she saw she had a reply in her inbox. She smiled as she read the message. It provided the exact amount of practicality and encouragement that she needed at that moment to hear.
Dear Warrior-Woman,
You amaze me with your strength. I can't imagine going through what you have gone through and surviving emotionally intact.
This next thing I'm going to say you are probably not going to want to hear. For your competition it is JUST business. They don't care about your personal situation at all. They probably have to answer to stockholders and investors, so they must meet their planned profit targets. As such, I think what you did for your employees showed how strong a manager and leader you really are. I know from our communications that you consider them friends. You handled the situation perfectly. They now can remember all the reasons your business has worth to customers and can articulate that value.
Please remember that you are a woman of incredible strength and you can lead your business and employees through whatever needs to happen.
I look forward to your next chapter.
Your cheerleader,
Serene-Pilot
Over the next several weeks, business remained slow. Haymitch came in twice a week to monitor the books and he seemed to becoming exceedingly grim about their current sales numbers. He was careful to hide it from everyone else, which she appreciated. However, by the end of eight weeks after Mellark's grand opening, she started to notice that he'd always take a nip off his flask before he opened their account books on the computer.
Katniss was sleeping less and less at night. On a positive note, her new story, which explored an alternative universe where events deviated slightly from the movie Serenity, was making steady progress. She was often up half the night writing. She had to add concealer to her morning regimen to cover up the dark circles under her eyes.
After one particularly awful day, Katniss hid out in her office. Haymitch had showed her that they had barely broke even for the month and if the current trend continued, it wouldn't be long before Everdeen's was operating in the red. She spent the afternoon avoiding the situation by distracting herself on Tumblr. After seeing a reblog of a piece of fanart from Serene-Pilot, she decided to send him a private message.
Today, I received the news that we barely broke even for the month. If things continue as they are, we very well may be in the red soon. The competition will drive me out of business. We've communicated our value – but the only ones who hear are our already very loyal customers. We've advertised sales and offered coupons. We've reached out to local businesses offering new services like catered lunches. I don't know what else to do.
-Warrior-Woman
A couple hours later, she had a response.
I think it's time you live up to your name. It's time to go to war. You've played very nice until this point, but maybe you need to remove the gloves so to speak. Perhaps you should consider some sort of public relations strategy that will drum up support for your business versus the competition.
-Serene-Pilot
It was sound advice. It was time to play dirty. Now she just needed to figure out how to do that exactly.
The next weekend was the one Saturday she took off a month. Haymitch always covered for her. Annie was off too, as she and Finnick had convinced her to go with them to the local ComicCon. They'd even talked her into cosplaying. She dressed as Zoe Washburn in black pants, grey shirt, and brown leather vest. She slung a costume gunslinger's belt across her hips. The night before she'd tightly braided her hair in several braids, which she wound on her head. It provided the desired results of wavy dark hair. When she came out of the bedroom dressed in costume, Gale laughed at her but she didn't care. She'd nailed Zoe's look.
When Finnick and Annie picked her up, they were equally well dressed. Annie was Kaylee, wearing flip-flops, dark khaki coveralls, and a blue silk blouse with a mandarin collar hanging open. She carried a little bamboo parasol. Finnick was dressed as Simon in black slacks, a nice silk vest, and white button up shirt. He'd even gone to the extra step of temporarily dying his naturally bronze hair brown.
Katniss had never gone to a ComicCon before. The actress who played Kaylee was going to attend and she hoped they'd be able to meet her.
When they arrived, the sheer size of the crowd of people overwhelmed her. Many were just dressed in jeans and geeky t-shirts proclaiming their love of certain games, shows, or books. Others were dressed as she was – favorite characters. She saw Wonder Women, Batmen, Lokis, Stormtroopers, and Gandalfs.
Finnick advised that they just take it a booth at a time. They made their way around the convention floor. Katniss bought a couple t-shirts. When it was time, they stood in line for an hour just to meet and greet with the actress who had starred as Kaylee, who seemed just as sweet in person as her character had been on the show.
As they were walking away from the meet and greet, Katniss was still gushing over the whole experience to Finnick and Annie who were agreeing wholeheartedly, when she walked into someone who had stopped in the middle of the aisle.
"Oh, sorry," Katniss apologized.
As the man turned around, Finnick joked, "Zoe, it looks like you found Wash." The man she bumped into was wearing brown coveralls, a Hawaiian shirt, and a utility vest.
"It's no problem. Hello, Katniss. I didn't know you like Firefly." Peeta observed.
"Why would you?" Katniss retorted.
"Finnick, this is Peeta Mellark of Mellark's," Annie informed.
Taken aback, Finnick mouthed a silent, "Oh."
"I guess I wouldn't. I love the show, myself. Wash is my favorite. I really like the dynamic he has with Zoe."
Annie and Finnick quietly watch their exchange as Katniss bit her lip before muttering, "Me too." She then turned to her friends, searching for help.
Finnick rescued her. "Isn't the line up to meet the guy who played Khal Drogo starting soon? We should go!"
Katniss nodded her head and mumbled, "Goodbye, Peeta," as they made their escape.
"Katniss, are you okay?" Annie asked.
"Yes. I'm fine."
"Let's go get a bite to eat," Finnick suggested.
After getting hotdogs, burgers, and fries from the food court the three sat down. Knowing that Annie wouldn't gossip with her co-workers, Katniss confessed that the business was in trouble.
"I'm ready to fight dirty. I'm just not sure how to go about doing it. A friend suggested creating some sort of public relations stunt that would draw people away from Mellark's and toward Everdeen's, but I'm not sure how to do it," she admitted.
The three sat eating their meals in silence as they thought about the situation. Katniss noticed that Annie's eyes kept darting between her and Finnick.
"Annie, what are you thinking?"
"I have an idea. Finnick is a freelance writer. Maybe he could write an op-ed piece for the local newspaper," Annie answered.
Finnick jumped in, "Darling, that's brilliant! I could write about the importance of supporting local business and all that Everdeen's provides to the community and how this chain, Mellark's, threatens great small businesses like yours from existing. Once you are gone, what's to keep Mellark's from offering the same products and services they currently do…oh this is good."
"Finnick, you would do this for me?" Katniss asked.
"Of course."
Katniss stood up and ran around the table, pulling her two friends into a hug. "Thank you!"
A/N:
Thank you very much to Pookieh for being an amazing beta. She turned around this story so fast and I'm grateful.
If you'd like more information about my fanfiction please visit my tumblr: dispatchesfromdistrict7
The characters are the property of the amazing Suzanne Collins and do not belong to me. I occasionally weave lines from her novels. Those totally belong to Ms. Collins too.
As I mentioned the plot is inspired by the movie You've Got Mail so I credit the creators of that film for the story idea – which I've adapted to modern times and Everlark.