Chapter 14: The Power of Regulars

“Everyone heard, right?”

During lunchtime, the butchers from the market gathered one by one at the market rest area.

This was right after the news about President Park had spread.

“He collapsed after just two days…”

President Kim let out a sigh as he smoked his cigarette.

“We all expected this, didn’t we?”

President Choi spoke coldly.

“President Park hasn’t even been open for a year. No regular customers, weak funds…”

“Still, to fall this quickly…”

President Lee scratched his head.

President Choi lowered his voice.

“To be honest… Now that MegaMeat has moved in, it’s going to be hard for any of us to survive.”

Everyone fell silent.

No one denied it.

“Six shops… No, now it’s just five. If even half of us survive, that counts as success.”

“So how do we make sure we’re in that half?”

“We have to follow our 10% rule. Be stricter about it.”

President Choi tapped the table.

“I checked yesterday, and already the prices are all over the place.”

“What’s the problem?”

“President Lee is selling pork belly for 2,280 won, President Kim for 2,100… The 10% rule is already falling apart.”

President Kim, who was selling at lower prices than promised, made excuses.

“Customers say we’re too expensive compared to MegaMeat…”

“That’s how you end up like President Park!”

President Choi raised his voice.

“If MegaMeat is at 1,980 won, we should be at 2,180. Exactly 10%. That’s the rule we set.”

President Lee took out a piece of paper.

“Let’s go over it again.”

[10% Rule Confirmation]

MegaMeat Pork Belly 1,980 won → Ours 2,180 won
MegaMeat Neck 1,780 won → Ours 1,960 won
MegaMeat Front Leg 1,480 won → Ours 1,630 won

“If you can’t keep to this, from then on, it’s every man for himself.”

“Yeah. If you don’t want to end up like President Park, we’ve got to stick together.”

“But honestly, even 10% is a big difference…”

President Kim said worriedly.

“Then what, drop it to 5%? We’re already selling at a loss.”

President Choi spoke firmly.

“10% is the minimum line. If we can’t even keep that, we’re all finished.”

“Fine, fine.”

They all agreed reluctantly.

“But President Jung is still doing his own thing, isn’t he?”

“I heard he doesn’t even sell pork belly.”

“That’s crazy. A butcher shop not selling pork belly.”

President Choi snorted.

“Leave him. He won’t last long anyway. After President Park, the next will be…”

He trailed off, but everyone knew.

“Alright, from today, stick to the 10% rule.”

“Okay.”

“We’ll meet again tomorrow morning to check prices. If needed, we can raise them little by little.”

One by one, they left their seats.

They all wore uneasy expressions as they departed.

*****

“Dad, we have twenty-three subscription customers this week.”

It was a service we had developed over the past month.

Every week, on a set day, we’d prepare the same cuts in advance.

“Attorney Kim gets 500g of sirloin every Wednesday, Professor Lee gets a special assortment every Friday…”

My father looked over the ledger, impressed.

“This really is convenient. For us and for the customers.”

“And we give them a 5% discount on top, so everyone wins.”

The door opened and a young couple came in.

“Excuse me, do you also offer the subscription service here?”

Word of mouth was spreading.

“Yes! Just let us know the day and cuts you want…”

I explained enthusiastically.

The couple nodded and signed up.

“Junho! Mrs. Park is here!”

Like clockwork, at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Mrs. Park came in.

“Hello! Here to pick up my usual order.”

I took out the pre-packed bag from the fridge.

[Ms. Park Youngsook – Thursday]
Grade 2 Aged Korean Beef 300g
Pork Cheek Meat 200g
Marinated Ribs 500g

“It’s so convenient having everything ready every week.”

Mrs. Park beamed brightly.

“I went to MegaMeat on their opening day, but the line was long and they didn’t even have the cuts I wanted… This place is much better.”

In the evening, Section Chief Choi dropped by.

“Boss, I’m here to pick up my weekly meat.”

“Oh, Section Chief Choi! Just a moment.”

[Mr. Choi Jinsu – Friday]
Pork Cheek Meat 300g
Grade 1 Bulgogi 500g
Pork Front Leg 1kg

“Section Chief, even with MegaMeat around, you only come to our shop?”

I asked carefully.

“Of course! Does MegaMeat have pork cheek meat? Does Junho handpick aged meat for me?”

Section Chief Choi laughed.

“But more importantly, you remember what I like here.”

*****

After closing, we totaled up the day’s sales.

“Eighty-seven thousand won…”

That’s a 30% drop compared to before MegaMeat opened.

It was thanks to the subscription service and our regulars that we managed to keep even this much.

“Almost no new customers today.”

Dad nodded.

“It can’t be helped. We can’t beat the MegaMeat name.”

“Still, we’ve managed to keep our regulars.”

“That’s something to be thankful for.”

Through the window, I could see MegaMeat.

It was still bustling with customers.

“Dad, maybe there’s just no helping it when it comes to customers.”

Dad gave a bitter smile.

“Yeah. Anyone who’s not a regular goes to MegaMeat.”

“I didn’t know brand power was this strong…”

TV ads, internet banners, social media…

MegaMeat was everywhere.

‘MegaMeat, The Nation’s Butcher Shop’
‘Quality guaranteed by Park Jeongnam’

Small shops like ours couldn’t compete with that kind of marketing.

*****

MegaMeat, week two since opening.

“Yes, this is Junho’s Butcher Shop.”

Several calls came in every day.

“Oh, you’re interested in our specialty cuts subscription? Yes, we offer that.”

“Delivery?”

“Sorry, for now we only do in-store pickup…”

I hung up and sighed.

Just this week, we’d had more than ten delivery inquiries.

“Junho, another delivery request?”

Dad asked.

“Yeah, they said they saw us on Instagram.”

“Oh, that?”

I showed him my phone.

Someone had posted a photo of our shop’s specialty cuts.

It had over 500 likes.

JunhoButcherShop #PorkCheek #SpecialtyCutRestaurant #SubscriptionService

“Young people find places like this these days.”

‘Guess this is just how things are in 2025.’

At that moment, I suddenly thought of President Park’s shop.

He was gone now, but the online sales equipment should still be there.

He’d said he’d sell all the fixtures in one go back then…

“Dad.”

“Hm?”

“What if we took over President Park’s shop?”

Dad turned around, surprised.

“What? Where’s this coming from?”

“Online sales. President Park’s shop should still have all the equipment.”

“Are you out of your mind?”

Dad nearly jumped.

“We’re barely keeping one store afloat with MegaMeat around, and you want to open another?”

“No, that’s not it…”

“Junho, do you know how much our sales have dropped?”

“I know. But…”

“How are you going to handle two when you can’t even run one properly? That’s a death wish!”

Dad’s voice grew loud.

“You saw what happened to President Park. Do you want us to end up like that?”

“Dad, just hear me out.”

I took a deep breath and spoke calmly.

“We don’t need to shrink away first.”

“What?”

“We’re not fighting against all 350 MegaMeat stores in the country. We just have to compete with the one in our neighborhood.”

Dad paused.

“President Park was weak in offline sales. We’re different.”

“Still…”

“Online inquiries keep increasing. We’d be fools to ignore this.”

I called the realtor to check directly.

Apparently, President Park had left in a hurry and left all the equipment behind.

“There’s packaging machines, a vacuum sealer, a large freezer… All still there.”

“And what would you do with that?”

“Use it just for online orders. Do all the packaging and shipping there.”

Dad shook his head.

“Money? How much do you think it’ll cost to buy all that?”

“I’ll look into getting a loan.”

“A loan? You don’t have any credit.”

I froze.

‘Ah…’

I was still thinking as the Kim Junho of 2157.

The world’s top meat designer.

Top credit, plenty of assets.

But right now, I was…

‘Jeong Junho.’

Civil service exam student Jeong Junho.

Unemployed for three years.

No money in the bank, not even a credit card.

“That’s right…”

I muttered without thinking.

“What’s right?”

“Ah… That I don’t have any credit…”

I was finally seeing reality.

What kind of life Jeong Junho really had.

Studying at the library every day.

Unable to even keep a part-time job.

Living off my parents’ allowance.

How could a penniless job seeker get a loan?

“Junho, you have to face reality.”

Dad was right.

I’d been too naïve.

Still thinking with the mindset of 2157.

Forgetting the reality of Jeong Junho.

It was bitter.

But this was reality, and I had to accept it.

*****

10 p.m.

I was tidying up the shop when a familiar silhouette appeared outside.

“Minjae?”

Through the glass, I saw Minjae standing there.

His shoulders were slumped, so different from last time.

“Junho hyung… are you here?”

I opened the door.

“Hey, Minjae. What brings you here all of a sudden?”

“Ah… I… You’re working, right? I’ll wait outside.”

“What are you talking about? Come in.”

“No, it’s fine. I mean it. Talk to me after you’re done.”

Minjae shook his head and walked back out.

He crouched next to the flower bed in front of the shop and took out a cigarette.

Something was off.

Last time he came, he’d been excited about his new startup job.

Ten minutes passed.

Minjae just kept smoking.

He was already on his third.

“Hey? Isn’t that Minjae?”

Dad, returning from the bathroom, looked out the window.

“Yeah, it’s him.”

“He doesn’t look good. I bet something happened.”

Dad looked at Minjae with concern, then took off his apron and said,

“Junho, I can finish closing by myself. Go check on him.”

“I still have to tidy up the display…”

“Don’t worry. Go on. He’ll catch a cold out there.”

I went outside.

I sat next to Minjae.

“Hey, what’s up? Did something happen at work?”

“…”

“Let’s go get some soju or something.”

“Hyung, I’m fine. You must be tired too…”

Minjae kept apologizing.

“Come on, let’s go. You must be hungry.”

I led Minjae to Uncle Sungjin’s Yukhoe restaurant.

It was past 10 p.m., but the lights were still on.

“Welcome!”

Uncle greeted us cheerfully.

“Oh? You brought a friend!”

“Hello,”

Minjae greeted him weakly.

Uncle seemed to sense something.

“Take a seat in the corner. Somewhere quiet is best, right?”

As soon as we reached the corner table, Minjae dropped into the seat with a thud.

“What do you want to eat?”

“Whatever you’re having…”

“Yuksasimi okay?”

“Yeah…”

We sat in silence as we waited for our food.

Minjae just kept fidgeting with his fingers.

“Minjae.”

“Yeah, hyung.”

“Take your time. I’ve got all night.”

Minjae lifted his head.

His eyes were bloodshot.

“Hyung… At the company…”

He couldn’t finish his sentence.

Uncle brought over the yuksasimi.

Slices of red meat neatly arranged on a plate.

“Eat first, then talk. Everything’s harder when you’re hungry.”

Minjae picked up his chopsticks but couldn’t eat.

His hands kept shaking.

“Hyung…”

“Yeah?”

“Today…”

His eyes filled with tears.

“I got fired from my company.”

“What? Out of nowhere?”

“The investment… stopped coming in.”

Minjae finally managed to speak.

“Developing technology costs money… but the investors pulled out…”

“But you’re a key member there.”

“Key member or not… If there’s no money, it’s over. I guess saying I was fired isn’t right, more like the company went under…”

Minjae emptied his soju glass.

“This morning, they called us in all of a sudden…”

“Those bastards…”

Now I understood.

Why he kept smoking outside.

Why he couldn’t talk.

“Hyung, what do I do?”

Minjae choked up.

“I worked so many nights… for it to end like this…”

My heart ached.

My hardworking junior, losing everything overnight…

“Minjae…”

“I haven’t told my parents yet. I’m scared they’ll be disappointed.”

Minjae’s shoulders trembled.