The Mystery Shopper

On Monday morning, Malin gets a short message from head office. "A mystery shopper will visit one of our stores this week. Please be at your best." She reads it twice and tells her team before the shop opens.

By ten o'clock, everyone is nervous. Hamza, the youngest, is polishing the same shelf for the third time. "They could be anyone," he whispers. "Even the person standing next to you in the queue."

Around noon, a tall man in a gray coat walks in. He picks up a jacket, puts it down, and asks for a different size. Then he complains about the lights, the music, and the price of the scarves.

"It's him," Hamza whispers behind the counter. "Nobody is that picky by accident."

The whole team agrees. They bring the man a cup of tea. They fetch three more sizes from the back room. Hamza even carries a hat to the mirror for him on a small tray. The man looks confused but pleased, and he stays for almost an hour. In the end, he buys one belt.

Malin isn't so sure. Something about it feels too easy, and she has a small doubt she can't explain. But she says nothing, because the others are so excited.

Meanwhile, a quiet woman has been standing near the door, looking at the socks. Nobody has noticed her. Malin walks over and asks if she needs help.

The woman holds up two pairs. "Which of these is warmer?"

"Honestly? The gray ones," Malin says. "The blue ones are cheaper, but they wear out after a few washes. You would probably buy them twice."

The woman nods, pays for the gray pair, and leaves without another word.

On Friday, a letter arrives from head office. Malin opens it with the whole team standing around her.

"Thank you for hosting our visit on Monday. Our shopper was impressed by the honest advice about socks, especially the warning about the blue pair."

Nobody speaks. Hamza looks at the empty teacup on the counter.

"So the man with the belt…" he says.

"Was just a man with a belt," Malin says. "A very picky one."

Hamza groans and sits down on the floor between two boxes of scarves.