marketing move was to reduce the size of the bar and leave it at five cents and the original bar which they tried unsuccessfully to sell at seven cents , was now sold at

ten CCl’ltS.

A popular item that many men bought was chewing tobacco. The brand that sold the most was Hickey and Nicholson and it was made in Charlottetown on Hensley Street where the Hensley Nicholson Co—op Housing now stands. When fresh, it was black sticky juicy tobacco about six inches long and one inch square. The company employed several of our customers and as so many liked to chew it I thought I should try it. I tried it and I almost blacked out.

Although Tuesdays and Fridays were both market days when the farmers brought their products to sell at the market, where the Confederation Centre now stands, Saturday was the big day to come to town to shop, go to the theatre, dance at the "Rollaway", walk around dizzy block a few times and perhaps have a few drinks along the way. Last stop was usually Zakem’s to meet whomever you were supposed to meet before crossing the bridge for home. Many customers would drop off their orders on their way in town and pick them up on the way out. In the fall, many would buy flour, sugar and other baking supplies in large quantities, such as hundred pound bags. We did not have the road infrastructure or plowing system that we have today, so quite often it would be many weeks before some farmers could get into the city .We developed a very close relationship with many of our customers which likely came about because of the similar characteristics of a family-run small business and

the small family farm.

Much of our business in the early years was done via the barter system. Very often, farmers would have no money to buy flour, sugar and other essential items, so they would trade potatoes, turnips, eggs and chickens, and no money would be involved. This system seems like a good arrangement, the only problem was that my father found it hard to say no when he knew that the farmer was depending on the sale to buy groceries. That meant loads of potatoes and turnips ended up in our basement, which I had to sprout and clean after school all spring. I don’t remember what the going price of potatoes was, but I remember turnips were going for 50 cents for 50 pounds and the farmer would ask for the empty bag back because it was worth more

than the turnips.

Our store was in a large old house. Half of the first floor was dedicated to the store, which was in the comer, and a room for storage in the back on the Weymouth Street

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