At the coalface, a supermarket retailer keeps supplies flowing
Goods are prepared at the Nanhui outlet of hypermarket chain RT Mart to be sent to residents under lockdown in Shanghai.
Wang Zhongkui used to be just another nameless retail worker in Shanghai until a quirk of fate plucked him from obscurity overnight.
Wang, manager of the Nanhui outlet of hypermarket chain RT Mart, found himself bombarded with pleading phone calls from strangers on April 1, after a staffer erroneously published his private number on a customer hotline.
Unwittingly, he became a "genie in the lamp" for the locked-down town of Huinan in the Pudong New Area.
Shanghai imposed lockdowns after a March resurgence of coronavirus hit the city. The policy led to clogged supply chains when many deliverymen were confined to their homes.
Wang felt under pressure to ensure a stable supply of food – even stronger than the work involved with providing ample supplies for sales promotions.
"This is different from the past," he said, cognizant of the depth of feeling that exists in the town.
Wang Zhongkui, manager of the Nanhui outlet of hypermarket chain RT Mart in Shanghai
Group buying has overtaken single deliveries for people needing to replenish their pantries. On April 1, Wang's store issued a notice encouraging local neighborhood committees to band together to place bulk orders.
Everything was going fine until his mobile phone number was mistakenly given out as the hotline number.
At first, he didn't find that strange. As a manager of a large supermarket, it's not unusual for him to receive unknown phone calls for orders. But the calls quickly multiplied.
"I think I was getting over 100 calls a day. It made my head swim," he said. "Callers were placing orders for milk, eggs, rice, meat, vegetables and diapers, among other items. It was like panic buying to clear our shelves."
Wang Zhongkui says he's getting more than 100 calls a day.
Wang was loath to reject any calls out of loyalty to customers. The outpouring of calls gave him a window into "what really matters to people in lockdown."
One caller told him there was no food in the house save for two sprouting potatoes.
"I just couldn't help wondering whether he was trying to grow potatoes at home," Wang said, explaining that spuds are commonly included in government's free food packages.
Usually, callers were ordering basic necessities, but there were exceptions that surprised him.
He remembered a young caller asking only for instant noodles because he didn't know how to cook and had no kitchen gear.
There was also high demand for mobile phone data cables because phones are the principal conduit for maintaining contact with other people during lockdown.
One day, Wang received a call from a young woman whose phone was almost out of power.
"Sobbing, she asked me how long would it take to send a cable to her," Wang said. "It's not really my job, but I just couldn't turn my back on her."
Some products may not seem like daily necessaries to most people, but for some, they are.
He also received many calls from elderly residents. One old woman ordered bananas, which she said were part of her daily diet to avoid constipation.
"To be honest, I hesitated a bit because it didn't sound like emergency," Wang said of the caller. "Our job is to ensure that no one goes hungry."
But after a staff member reminded him that cardiovascular problems can be triggered by irregular bowels in the elderly, he said he realized the gravity of the woman's order.
Wang has also received calls asking for baby formula and adult diapers.
"They may not seem like daily necessaries to most of us, but for some people, they are," he said. "I pack items for infants and the elderly myself to ensure they get what they want."
The products are sent to local neighborhoods.
His store has only two delivery vehicles – a modified passenger van and a small van borrowed from a local volunteer named Hei Ge, who sometimes worked up to 20 hours a day.
Hei reported back to Wang the tales of woe he encountered. The women who said they haven't had fresh vegetables for several days and later sobbed with gratitude when provisions are delivered. The residents who waited behind residential compound fences, no matter how long or how late in the day, to receive a delivery. The residents who offered delivery people a bottle of water to quench their thirst.
It's as though there is a road forking in three directions, Wang said.
"One leads to lockdown compounds; one leads to us, the supermarket; and one leads to the outside world."
Staff at the store are busy preparing meat.
Wang and 105 of his employees have been staying in the store for more than five weeks to ensure normal operations. "We want local residents to know that we are here for them, rest assured," he said.
The RT Mart chain has mobilized 600 people from Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces to address the local manpower shortage in sorting, packaging and delivery.
"More delivery vehicles will be joining us soon," Wang said. "That may give us a chance to catch our breath."
The RT Mart chain has mobilized 600 people from other provinces to address the local manpower shortage in sorting, packaging and delivery. Some have arrived Shanghai.
The store's hotline number has been corrected, but people are still calling Wang's personal phone for help.
He has spent 17 years in retailing, including 12 years in Changzhou, in neighboring Jiangsu Province. He moved to Shanghai in September 2020, seeking new opportunities.
Before the lockdowns, Wang returned home to Changzhou once a week to reunite with his wife and 10-year-old son. Now he is reduced to nightly video chat with them.
"I often ask my son to play piano for me," he said. "He thinks I am a hero. But I don't think so. Everyone who's working on the front line is doing their bit to help."
(By courtesy of WeChat accounts of raistlin2017, Shanghai TV news and Changzhou Daily)
