SLC31-W2: Shop & Share Challenge - Visit a Supermarket or Mini Market

_{picture of the place.}

So I decided to visit Anointed Brands Mart and they got me anointed with products that are rare to see in supermarkets or a mini market in my area. I drove all the way to see what this small but mighty mini market has and I was shocked to see that they have most of the things I've been looking for. If you're a yoghurt or body spray fan, you'll definitely love shopping here because it's rare to see a mini market, talk more of a supermarket having 3 chillers and 5 freezers which they classify their drinks.

This is a mini market and the name of this mini market is Anointed Brands and Mart. It's actually built as a pharmacy and the mart came in as a complement for business expansion. The Mart is a separate section from the pharmacy, although they are in one big building.

Talking about the management of this place, I did a little research and came to see that this place is really a brand. It has other branches in Uyo and beyond and the owner of this brand happens to be James Offor Samuel. I didn't want to ask physically as this may be personal information for some staff and managers. There's a lady who happens to be the manager of this Mart. I don't know her much. I just know she's the manager of the mini market or mart. Now where's this place located?

This place is located in Oron Rd, Oron Rd. The precise Address for this place is No. 253 Oron Rd. It's close to the newly built Ring Road 3 and is housed as a sub section of this big business firm. If you're coming from Udoudoma or from **ring road roundabout, it's after the roundabout you'll see the mart embedded in a 3-storey building, but on the ground floor. If you're coming from Airport Rd or from Ifa Atai, it's before Christmas the roundabout of Ring Road 3. You can use any route to get here. It's actually the biggest built business center after the roundabout.

	Location of the place

As the name implies, it's a mart and not big in size, but mighty in content. It's actually structured in the form of a square with other businesses attached to it. The exterior of the mart is quite attractive. I'll take it bit by bit.

• Parking lots: Anointed Brands Mart has a very big parking space that can accommodate a lot of vehicles even though it's not independent on its own. The parking space is interlocked and spacious. If you look at the picture below, you'll see to it that cars are comfortably parked here.

	Parking lots

• Exterior design: It has its brand name written on an LED name board which shines the name of the place at night. It's beautifully designed even though the pharmacy's name is boldly written, you can decipher that it's a mart from the things left outside. These aren't exterior designs though, but add colour to the market. At the entrance is a green carpet that adds beauty to this place. This helps curtail dirt from entering inside the shop as customers get to wipe off the soles of their shoes in the grass.

_{picture of the panel board that carries the name of the mart.}

• Front displays and entrance: In front of the mart, you'll get to see products kept on both sides, most of which are bulky products for visibility. The entrance of this mart is made of untampered glass with the pull and push pattern. It's made transparent as it should be with handles. All these products displayed outside are kept on metal shelves.

	Drinks

The interior of this place is very comfortable even though it's not spacious. Anyways, it's a mini mart. The decor in terms of colour s and lighting makes it beautiful and well lit. It has a built-pop ceiling with sufficient LED bulbs and CCTV cameras on corners. The interior is structured in a way that the shelves are the demarcations and there's an aisle in each demarcations.

It has about three major aisle and one front desk for payment and packaging of goods bought. The tiles used on the floor of the mart is just the perfect tiles that fits the environment. It's designers tiles. At the entrance, there's a security seated there who receives customers and probably tell them to keep their bags in the shelves outside the mart. Let's talk about the facilities in the interior before telling you guys my shipping experience and all that. ....

Anointed brand mart has no major facility as you may expect because it's embedded in a business firm and not independent on its own, but they do have a convenience at the far end of the building. The sections are quite explicit, starting from the exterior to the interior and I'll tell you what each section accommodates.

• No-Bags in facility shelf: This shelf is kept outside with locks to enable customers keep theirs bags, wallets or any small carrier that may prevent theft of products in the mart. This shelf has small boxes with locks and numbers for me easy identification. In a situation where the bags cannot be contained in the boxes, the security secures the bag in his post for you to get it when you're done shopping. Sometimes there are exceptions to this.

	Locker shelf

• Bulk exterior shelves These shelves are kept outside the mart and contains different products. In the left-hand side of the mart, the shelves there contain soft bottle drinks in cartons which customers can easily take after being purchased. The right-hand side contains bags and footwear including canned drinks, stacked in a unique way.

	Footwears
	Canned drinks

• Front desk — Payment Point: This is where payment and packaging of goods bought are done. There are two sales representatives who ensure that goods are paid for and packaged for customers. They do accept cash payments, transfers and card payments. So purchases can be done in any medium you have money. This is located at the left-hand side from the entrance.

• First aisle: This section is the first place you'll see when you enter this mart. It's a section where goods like bread, noodles, grains and other easy to pick things people purchase everyday are kept. Inside the aisle are cosmetics, creams, skincare products, perfumes and body sprays. All types of designer perfumes are also sold here. I was shocked to see a body spray I've been looking for months in this place and at an affordable rate. This section is managed by a sales representative who stands in to receive and attend to customers in that aisle.

	Noodles
	Bread
	Designers perfume
	skincare products
	creams and body sprays

• Second Aisle: This is a section you use to enter the main part of the mart where payment is done and this is actually the aisle you can use in leaving the mart. On this aisle are shelves that contain different things. On the left-hand side of the aisle is a biscuit section where you can actually see all types of biscuits and cookies with some dry herbal teas. You'll definitely see the prices of these biscuits written on a price tag. On the right-hand side of the aisle is a show glass with baked snacks and a gift trolley that contains gift boxes and cards as you can see displayed here. This is also the section where the front desk is.

_{picture of the biscuit section.}

	Gifts and baked snacks

• Third Aisle — Freezer Section: This section contains 5 freezers that contains different drinks which I'll specify. On the right-hand side of this aisle contains packaged snacks like chin chin , groundnuts and the likes. The left-hand side from the entrance contains toothpastes, golden morn and others. Now the freezer section.

_{picture of the chin chin. and snacks}

	Toothpaste section

All these freezers contain these drinks in their right temperature.

1	2
3	4

_{picture of the freezers.}

• Aisle 4 — Chillers section: In this section, we see two chillers and a shelf for insecticides, air fresheners, washing agents and the likes. There's another shelf adjacent to it that contains other things people usually look for, books, writing materials and school stuffs. Beverages are also included in this section.

	Chillers
	Air fresheners and washing agents
	Insecticides

_{picture of the beverages and other sections.}

I didn't even know anyone there because it was my first time shopping there, but I was welcomed and treated like a special guest, as they do every with other person. Their facial expressions could tell that they weren't harsh and insecure as some in places I visit when I want to make enquiries. The manager was approachable and friendly which made it easier for me to communicate with her.

I've not visited this mart before. It's actually my first time shopping here. I was just passing by and now, it has become my favourite shopping spot, no matter the distance. I was attracted to the mart by the buildings and the number of cars seen in their parking lots. You can't pass through this route without seeing this place. The panel board is enough visibility. So imagine such a place is booming and attractive in such a way and in a big place made me curious to know what's done there. That's why I chose it amongst others and I just had the feeling they would have what I was looking for, the body spray Musuf and other designers.

Before telling you about the item I bought in this place, I'll tell you some of their products and their prices.

I bought Nutri choco, a chocolate drink that tastes great when cold and is taken with a straw. I bought it at 800 naira and I wasn't given any receipt. I just had the receipt of the transfer I made to the supermarket on purchase. This is a selfie of me with the drink and you can see the drink being packaged for me in a black cellophane.

screenshot of Receipt of transfer

Like I said at the onset, it was my first time, but I wasn't treated as though it was my first time. They were so approachable and expressive to be honest. After taking permission to capture certain things in the mart, I was free without the staff having any feel of insecurity. The manager is outspoken and I could find most of the things I was looking for in this place.

There's a yoghurt I've been looking for and behold! it was here. I spent a few minutes here and was given the best customer treatment ever. Even when I had network issues, I was assisted with WiFi and made the transaction without delay. My shopping experience here was great and I bet, the price were moderate and didn't scare me off. I would definitely love to visit this place again.

The business isn't lagging in patronage at all and it's a mart for both the rich and the poor. I think a little bit of expansion can be done in the place in to accommodate a lot of customers all at once. If it's in products, they have t, quality and all that. So I think it's just the space and they can also push themselves publicly a little bit to enhance their business publicity. They have three known branches or more in Nigeria that I know of.. It's actually a unique space for shopping

A mini market is the market for the people and its location should always be along the roadside to get publicity. It's a place you can see virtually everything which includes your wants in terms of household items, snacks, drinks, kitchen things and others. You'll always find what you're looking for in a supermarket that's why it's important it's situated along the road.

Local businesses like stores and shoe repair isn't a business that should be made publicly because these one have specializations. They basically sell what can be consumed and they are accessible to people in their homes. It's a place you can get your immediate needs and it's not even a place that needs to be popular because there are a whole lot of local businesses close to people's home.

Even if it's inside a street, it doesn't matter or bother anyone and passers-by can't get to such a place because it's for the local community and solves immediate needs. The supermarket is for people far and wide, looking for where to purchase quality and the best. So that's why I think a supermarket should be made more public than the local businesses.

If you're looking for a mart you can find products that are rare and designers at that, Anointed Brands Mart is for you. Their prices done scare people off and they deal with varieties, in good quantity, to fill the needs and wants if their customers.