Chapter 48 Caroline's Store

Four days have passed since the lighting ceremony of the New York Stock Exchange. News about it spread like wildfire in the eastern parts of the United States. The ceremony was hyped up, attracting each state of the country to have one in their districts. One even considered it to be a turning point in history, but one question hung up in their head, is history heading in the right direction?

Jonathan and Poul are on their last day in New York. They'll have a train and a ferry to catch up in the morning to get back to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. But before they returned to their base of operations, they made a promise to visit Caroline's company branch in Broadway New York.

The two industrialist duo exited the carriage and struck their heads up to take in the appearance of the building.

"This is her shop?" Poul uttered, he had to take a step back to see the full view of the building.

"And a long line of people," Jonathan said, glancing at the long queue on the sidewalk, waiting patiently for the establishment to open.

"It must be popular with the locals," Poul observed. "Well, we should probably get in line. It's getting filled up by the minute.

Jonathan nodded in agreement and joined the line. Ten minutes later, the shop opened and it started accommodating customers. There was a limit to how many people the shop could take. In this instance, Forty people are allowed inside the shop every thirty minutes and it's very strict. The customers have to grab what they want from the shelves and have it checked out on the counter. If not, they will be asked to leave respectfully, making it fair to those waiting outside.  Also, the faster the customers shopped, the faster for the next customer to enter the shop.

Poul and Jonathan waited for about one hour and twelve minutes. And the moment they entered the establishment, they were dumbstruck.

"This is…" Poul uttered and was unable to complete his sentence.

"A shopping mall," Jonathan finished, looking around at the store.

It was a well-decorated store, with a dash of modern interior design. There are sections for cosmetics, apparel, and personal care products such as shampoo, hair conditioner, body wash, soap, liquid hand-wash, deodorants, toothbrushes, and toothpaste which have a sweet smell that perfumes the air. The interior was bright thanks to huge windows on the wall, allowing natural lights to enter.

All in all, it was a decent store. And as they were scanning the surroundings, someone approached them and tapped Poul's shoulder with a finger.

Poul turned around and met eyes with a woman. She had a friendly smile on her face. And she seemed to know who he was immediate.

"I see you found our shop, Sir Poul and Jonathan."

"Caroline?" Poul exclaimed, surprised. "I didn't expect you to walk up behind us and personally welcome us."

"I concur," Jonathan added.

"Well, you two are an important guest. You didn't tell me what time you plan on visiting my store. I could have pulled you out of the line and given you two exclusive access."

"That won't do, Miss Caroline. As much as it would have saved us some time, it would take away the experience.  Something that we value more over convenience," Jonathan said coolly.

Caroline giggled, amused at Jonathan's remark.

"Where is Amelia?" Poul asked.

"She is busy packing her things up," Caroline somberly said. "I can't believe she's leaving tomorrow morning. We have been together for eleven years, working together."

"You are making us feel guilty for hiring her as our secretary," Jonathan let out a chuckle. "If you are feeling that bad, we can retract it."

"No no, that would be an unwise thing to do. She had steeled herself, and I must do the same. Anyways, before our conversation turned depressing, at least for me, let me show you around the shop."

Caroline led the way and the two industrialist duo followed behind. The first section they visited was the apparel section. They have glanced at it earlier, and they saw dresses and suits for men and women, but the moment they explored deeper, Jonathan and Poul's eyes widened when they saw an unexpected product.

Briefs, boxers, all kinds of panties, pantyhose, tights, and a lot more. They were worn by mannequins posing in an alluring fashion.

"Oh, my," Poul wiped the sweat beading on his forehead with the back of his arm. "Are those natural fibers?"

"So far yes, I'm still in the process of developing synthetic fibers such as nylons and polyesters but the technology of this world is primitive. It's why I'm investing a lot of money into developing equipment and materials that will allow me to synthesize those synthetic fibers."

"I see. And the mannequins, it seems that they are not made of wood. Are those plastic?" Poul asked.

"Yes," Caroline confirmed. "It's made of bakelite."

"I must say, I'm interested in buying briefs and boxers. Wearing loose pants as underwear is something that I'm finding hard to adapt to," Jonathan said.

"Well, you can choose the colors and sizes and we will deliver it to you in your hotel," Caroline said.

"Are they selling well?" Poul asked. "This underwear, I am not good with the history of underwear but I'm sure these things are not popular in this era."

"You are quite correct, Sir Poul. Men are wearing shorts as undergarments while women wear chemise, which is a type of shirt women wear to protect their dresses from body oils and sweats. They were fine with it but with the power of marketing, I was able to convince a lot of people that wearing underwear made by our company is more comfortable and fashionable, and so it grew and became popular. It cost us a lot of money to get to where we are but it was worth it."

"Uhm…Miss Caroline, if I may ask, are you wearing one now?" Jonathan said, his eyes slowly wandering downwards.

"I admire your boldness for asking me that question directly, I may find it impolite but I'll let you off," Caroline grinned. "I am indeed wearing one, do you want to see it?" She asked teasingly.

"No, that would be improper. I was just asking because I was curious. I'll leave things to my imagination."

Caroline scoffed softly. "I was not being serious anyways, so even if you answered yes, I'm not going to show it."

"Okay let's end this talk about panties and check the other sections," Poul interjected.

The next section they visited is where the personal care products are displayed. Poul and Jonathan were sniffing the packaging of shampoos and deodorants.

"Everything you see here is organic. Aloe vera, coconut oil, essential oils, fruit and plant extracts," Caroline introduced to them her products.

"I guess that these will cost a ton, knowing that those extracts and oils are labor-intensive to extract," Poul said.

"Yeah, I had to set up a company all over the world to do the extraction. The logistics were a huge challenge and that's why the products that you are seeing right now will be expensive that only the rich can afford. Though I'm making efforts to reduce the cost so that ordinary people can get it too. After all, they'll be my future market."

"If only you had the technology to make synthetic chemicals. Unfortunately, you don't," Poul said.

"Yes, which is why I will ask for your help. Follow me to my office."

She led the two industrialist duo to her office. Poul and Jonathan let out a sigh of admiration. The difference between her office and theirs is like heaven and earth. Compared to their measly office, Caroline's features a large chamber with luxurious furnishings, carpeted flooring, a shelf filled with books and files, and a large desk.

"Welcome to my office, please sit," Caroline gestured to the empty chairs.

"This looks more like a lounge instead of an office," Jonathan commented. "Our office pales in comparison to this."

"Oh my, is your office small?" Caroline asked.

"Yes."

"Well, Amelia would be in shock if she were to see it. She is used to this kind of setting."

"You heard that Poul?" Jonathan said as he glanced at Poul, who was taking his seat.

"Yeah, we didn't really bother on building a proper building as we were on schedule. But I'll do my best to make her workplace look convenient like this."

"I'm sure Jonathan had already shared with you the contents of our conversation last time in Bethesda Park."

"Yes and thanks to you we find out that we are not unique in this world. You said you are from Germany? I used to work in Siemens and BMW."

"Really? Tell me more about your background as it was one of the questions I'd like to ask you," Caroline said.

"I also worked at Lockheed Martin developing a sixth-generation fighter. I'm sure you have heard of that company right? If it exists in your world."

"Yes, so that means you have a vast knowledge of aircraft and automobiles, right?"

"I do."

"The more I hear about you two the more I see your value skyrocketing. You think you can make the first aircraft or automobile in this world?"

"I can, but we are busy with our current venture," Poul said and glanced back at Jonathan. "Right, partner?"

Jonathan nodded.

"Then please let me know when you decide to make one. I want to see it for myself. But for now, let's return to the main topic. I need your help, Poul. You are good on paper, and I believe you can make the equipment I need to increase the efficiency of production of my business."

Poul hummed as he thought. "Miss Caroline, as much as I would love to help you with that, I can't at this moment. We had a contract signed with Russels about electric motors so I'll be busy making direct current motorized tools, and then we have hundreds of orders of air brakes and locomotive draft gears from every major railroad company in the United States…and…"

"You may stop there, Poul," Caroline raised a hand, stopping him from speaking. "I understand the situation."

"I'm sorry, Miss Caroline, I do," Poul said.

"I'm also sorry, as my partner and I have different expertise. I would have helped you."

"Thank you for the compassionate words, Mister Jonathan. Well, it can't be helped then. You are interested in purchasing some of my products, let's go focus on that instead."