How a 21-year-old student used ChatGPT to help revive her family's debt-ridden grocery store

What began as a struggle to save a family-run grocery store has turned into a case study in how artificial intelligence can support small businesses. According to a report by CNA Insider, cited by Moneycontrol, Lin Enqi, a 21-year-old student from Singapore, helped revive.

Rather than relying solely on traditional retail practices, Enqi turned to ChatGPT to tackle some of the store's biggest operational challenges. One of her first hurdles involved organising inventory after the business adopted a new point-of-sale system.

What Happened

Manual sorting would have taken nearly a week, but Enqi used ChatGPT to streamline the process, completing the task in about two days. Beyond inventory management, Enqi sought AI-generated ideas to boost sales without sacrificing profitability.

• When she took charge of the business at the age of 18, the store was burdened with debts exceeding S$30,000 (about ₹20 lakh) and was facing declining sales.

• The store carried more than 8,000 products, all of which had to be categorised correctly.

• Enqi's experience illustrates how technology can support entrepreneurs in solving everyday business problems, even while balancing other commitments such as education.

Key Details

According to the report, ChatGPT suggested offering vouchers linked to minimum spending thresholds, a strategy designed to encourage higher basket sizes while protecting margins. She credited such recommendations with helping improve the store's financial performance.

• As AI tools become more accessible, small and family-owned businesses are finding new ways to improve efficiency without major investments.

• While AI did not eliminate the challenges facing the store, Enqi told CNA Insider it became a practical business assistant that helped her save time and make more informed decisions.

• The turnaround highlights how small businesses are increasingly experimenting with artificial intelligence tools for tasks ranging from inventory management and customer engagement to marketing and research.

Why It Matters

As her confidence in AI grew, Enqi went a step further by creating a custom GPT model with support from Nanyang Polytechnic's Centre for Applied AI. The personalised assistant was trained using information about the store's operations, previous promotions and customer trends.

• Instead of spending hours searching through reports and articles, she can obtain summaries and relevant insights in minutes.

• The student also uses ChatGPT as a research tool, helping her keep track of retail trends, analyse information quickly and make business decisions more efficiently.

What Reports Say

Coverage of the story so far points to:

• Continued reporting by Storyboard18 as more details emerge