Retailers On The Frontline: Meet Ashok

Retailers on the Frontline: Meet Ashok

Here at Payzone, we’re very proud of our retailers, as many have gone above and beyond to help their vulnerable customers.

That’s why we’ve launched our brand new Retailers on the Frontline Awards, as voted for by customers. Our customers have been busy giving us some great feedback through the survey at the bottom of their Payzone receipts. So we’ve been visiting the nominated retailers to say thank you in person, and present them with a gift voucher as a small token of our appreciation.

We also thought it was a great opportunity to share some of the fantastic work that Payzone retailers have been doing within their communities.

Meet Ashok Kumar

Halesowen is a bustling market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands. On Olive Road, you’ll find Olive Stores, a lovely family-run store that serves a large residential community.

Ashok Kumar is one of the owners of Olive Stores in Halesowen and works alongside his parents and his brother, Sanjiv. For over 16 years they have welcomed many customers from the two large estates nearby. Very soon, the local community is set to grow as new homes are being built in the area, and Ashok is looking forward to welcoming new customers to the store.

So, what has Ashok and his family been doing since the outbreak of coronavirus?

After learning that COVID-19 was going to force the country into lockdown, Ashok and his family worked tirelessly to ensure that the store was kept fully stocked with the essential items that their community needed. They continued to sell key supplies such as bread, milk and eggs at exactly the same prices as they did before coronavirus.

Ashok and his family quickly realised that for some of their customers, visiting the store in person was not an option anymore. To make sure that everyone in the community has access to what they need, Olive Stores now offers a delivery service through Deliveroo. Over the last few weeks,
they have sent out over 100 orders. In addition to this, they have also been providing some home deliveries themselves, as elderly customers may not be confident enough to use Deliveroo.

Ashok commented: “Providing home deliveries to a wider area has been great as we now have a good relationship with new customers further away from the shop.”

Residents in Halesowen are very impressed with the service they receive at Olive Stores.

“It looks small on the outside but inside they stock a lot of products.” Commented one customer.

“It seems to be a well-run family business. There is also a bill payments option, which is useful and you can do the lottery here too.”

To Ashok and his family who work at Olive Stores, thank you.