An old French lady had owned a tiny shop in her village for many years. Everyone knew her, and most people stopped by for bread, coffee, or a little chat.

One day, a huge corporate supermarket opened right across the road.

The supermarket wasted no time. They put up big bright signs advertising special prices, including one that read:

“Butter – 10 euros.”

The old lady looked at the sign, smiled, and placed her own sign in the window:

“Butter – 9 euros.”

The next morning, the supermarket changed its sign.

“Butter – 8 euros.”

So the old lady changed hers too.

“Butter – 7 euros.”

Day after day, the price war continued. The supermarket kept lowering the price, and the old lady always went one euro lower.

Finally, one of her loyal customers became worried.

“Madame,” he said, “you cannot keep doing this. A big supermarket can afford to lose money for a while, but a small shop like yours cannot compete with them forever.”

The old lady glanced across the road, then leaned toward him with a little smile.

“Monsieur,” she whispered:

“I don’t even sell butter.”