99 years old, Gem & Co and Kalathi Shop in Chennai show an enterprise need not have muscle to survive time

As these retail outlets march towards the centenary mark, an attempt to decipher that which makes them click: Gem & Co at NSC Bose Road in George Town has persisted with its belief that fountain pens, even artisanal ones, have a place in this digital age. And Kalathi Shop, operating from a hole in the wall at North Mada Street in Mylapore, is essentially a petty shop that has people beating a path to its door for its rose milk