Pierre...is he misunderstood or a slimeball? (or both!)

I've noticed that the community tends to have one of two opinions about Pierre. Either he's a total jerk who's all about the money or they don't really have an issue with him.

Having worked retail before, I understand why he's so obsessed with the store. He's got a rival that's a big corporation and he's akin to a *ma and pa* store. If customers don't show up, stores get closed down due to lack of business (place I used to work at actually did that, they are now out of business). So, from the retail standpoint, I do understand why he feels pressured...

HOWEVER, he seems to take it well beyond what you would expect regarding the business. His wife complains that she wishes he's spend more time with family and less time at the store. He complains that he doesn't understand his daughter at all (because he's always at the store, he doesn't have time to understand her!). He feels somewhat trapped, caught between *wanting to drive Joja out of Pelican Town* and *wanting to just be a good family man, but he can't be that because he's so threatened by Joja that he feels he needs to be a salesman first, a father and husband second*.

So...where do you stand on the issue of Pierre? Is he too obsessed with money? (probably) Is Joja the main reason why he comes across as business first, family second (or third)? Is his personality just bad?

Inquiring minds want to know!

 

We might have to wait for CA to add more dialogue and such to the "late-game" to answer this... because once Joja is forced out, Pierre is open 7 days a week, lol. He's running the store MORE than he did before Joja.

I assume that this is a mechanics thing, to reward the player (and to avoid being wholly unable to buy seeds since Joja closes down).

BTW, I work at a store and the same thing is happening -- they're a Ma and Pa store and they are slowly being forced out of business because of too many other stores moving in... cut cut cut in payroll, writing's on the wall, etc. We're not sure how much longer he can hold up.

 

I think he is a workaholic who started his workaholic tendencies with good intentions, then started using them as a coping mechanism when his family life hit a rough patch. He really seems like he's lost most of his identity to the store, and doesn't know how to function properly when he isn't working.

 

I'm in the got no issue with Pierre. Having seen some friends who tried to run their own business, that stuff is brutal and it does cause folks to end up very focused on every bit and promo to try to squeak ahead. So if anything I find Pierre very realistic as a person who is likely trying to do right and support his family but also the stress that comes with that kind of drive.

 

He's both, in my opinion.
Personally? I don't like Pierre at all. I don't like his personality, he seems too obsessed with his work, he is rude to Abigail, and he would rather impulsively deal with situations (i.e. punching morris) than to think things through. This leads me to think he's not the nicest guy, even if he has the best intentions.

Are there reasons behind this behavior? Of course, but I can't just love a person because he lets those reasons control him. Pierre needs a better family situation and a better work situation for sure, and I'm sure he's unhappy marriage-wise so he turns to his shop to cope with it. I understand those aspects, so I don't think he's the worst in the world and there is always room for change and development.

In the context of this game, though? Yeah, he's the worst. He makes very bad decisions and kinda throws your hard work in your face while he benefits from it.

 

Misunderstood.

To me, he seems like a normal person with life orientation to make money through hard work. And just a guy who cared about his family in his way. No one ever is perfect and each must have flaw(s). I would be wary of people who seemingly have no flaw at all. Pierre's flaws however are not that negative to convince me that he is a bad/slime ball because I've seen worse.

Morris however is an enigma, even more so than Pierre imo. CA purposely outlined the situation in such way we cannot interact with him at all. The one thing we got to see is how he too aimed to be rich/successful like Pierre except he used underhand tactic (predatory pricing, although unknown whether it is Joja Corp's protocol, or simply his own management) to drive Pierre out of business. Also at the end of community center. But is that all about Morris? We may never know...

 

Can I go with both?

My headcanon that Pierre wasn't always obsessed with money and his shop but when his marriage become difficult and he began having what would be long term suspicions he is not Abigail's biological father he began turning to money and the shop as a way of dealing with it, all in all a pretty bad method as it just damaged his family relationships worse.

I think Pierre is not a nice person, but in all honesty I dislike Caroline more. I am a huge believer in the sanctity of monogamous relationships and sleeping with another person is worse than having a secret stash of pornography (which I still think it might have been booze or drugs).

I imagine this is why I deliberately lose to Pierre at the Stardew Valley Fair once I get that stardrop. Winning means a lot more to Pierre than to me.

 

Caroline has stated that she once visited the wizard before Pierre and her got married (IIRC, I think she said before), so it's implied that Abigail was conceived just before the wedding and that the due date was close enough to make Pierre think (at least at first) that Abby was conceived on the night of the wedding?

 

I don't see how that's any less a monogamous relationship. If Abigail was conceived so close to their wedding day that Pierre thought she was his Caroline must have been his fiancee when she visited the wizard.

 

Most everyone has some slimballiness to them in that game.

Lewis is to afraid to let Marnie in on his life, which let's face it I believe is an open secret in town and it hurts Marnie.

Pam is the town drunk who will spike the punch to make it more "festive" and will hold a grudge.

Demetrius is neglectful to Sebastian.

Alex is a jerk jock

Haley is stuck up.

George is an abusive old man who is mad at the world passing him by.

Yes Pierre as some bad habits, but he is trying. From my perspective, Stardew Valley is an old community and Pierre's store might be a third generation one. With Joja coming into the picture, in Pierre's mind he feels if his store dies, he is a failure and is forcing himself to do what he can so he does not fail the family name. Again this is all theory and I do hope CA addresses some of these comments.

 

I'm going to go with Pierre being a slimeball.

As I posted back in an old thread, Pierre was openly antagonistic to the point where I would rather plough money into Joja rather than support him.
Pierre sends spam mailers, attempted bribery of a public official, sponsored books as advertising. He's what Joja would be if Joja never expanded into a megacorp.

If Joja is meant to represent a looming change for the worse, Pierre is enough to convince me that the worst is already here.

He might be sympathetic with his failing marriage, and have his reasons, but he's still a slimeball.

 

I like how everyone has their own ideas on Pierre and shows it with examples. Myself, I think he's kind of both, he is clearly all about the money and making sure that he stays in business, which comes across as "he's a slimeball". He also struggles with a troubled marriage and feeling threatened by Joja, and while I disagree how he copes with that, it shows that he's misunderstood.

(Now I can't get a line from West Side Story out of my head..."I'm not bad, I'm misunderstood!)

 

I like Pierre.

Points in his favor:
1. Despite the trying business environment he's in, he *never* turns down your sales to him from lack of funds. As I'll routinely lay out hundreds of thousands of perishable goods on him, that's a *lot* of capital he's laying out and a huge financial risk he's assuming. Most small business resellers with that kind of open heart and wallet will bankrupt themselves quickly. The same could be said of Lewis, but let's be real here- the mayor isn't reselling goods himself. He's just getting them into the hands of the appropriate people (Pierre for most goods, or Willie for fish, etc), so those who think they haven't sold to Pierre think wrong
2. His house is open to folks to use for religious practices, even though he and his family are not believers. This shows tolerance and a community oriented nature, and is a positive reflection on all who live there.
3. Though much is made of him as a poor husband or father, keep in mind that other than festivals (which he attends with his wife), and fridays at the saloon (where his daughter is also hanging out), he NEVER LEAVES HOME. He's not hanging out at the saloon every night while his wife is sobbing in bed. He's not running off and hooking up with someone else. He's not the one hanging out with Jodi and Kent all the time instead of his family. He has no friends, no hobbies, he has nothing in his life beyond his work and his family. Now do I think that that he *should* be leaving the house with Abigail and spending time with her, learning her interests? Of course. Do I think that he *should* be going on day dates with his wife on his days off and doing activities together? Sure. But keep in mind, on Wednesdays when he has the day off, it's not him running off and doing other things, while complaining his significant other isn't spending enough time with him.
4. He specifically gets in stock a Bouquet for you when he notices your growing relationship with a local villager, meaning he's paying attention to the going ons of the town and you specifically, and that he is actively trying to help your relationship with the person of your choosing. This is more touching when the person in question is his daughter, but the insight needed to know it's necessary when it's someone else is impressive in its own right. Think he's out of touch? Think again.
5. He sends unsolicited rebate mailers. How cool is that. This also means that, after accounting for the rebates, his store is *always* cheaper than Jojamart, a huge corporation with a local distribution center. He *could* play up the "woe is me" aspect and try to convince locals that they need to support him instead of Joja despite his higher prices (many retailers do), but he keeps his pricing fair and competitive and his discussions are typically product-centric. He expands his selection, and can handle orders of any size. This means that he runs an absolutely Killer one man business, and keeps his prices fair and gives people every incentive possible to do business with him instead of his competitors, which I can absolutely respect.

All told, I like the guy a lot. Just like Clint, Robin, Marnie, and Willy, his presence actively helps my character and makes my life easier. Harvey is occasionally useful (and has superhuman insights into my condition, in a creepy way), but there are over a dozen characters who could go away and it wouldn't negatively impact me at all other than being a little sad about it. Pierre is a economic partner and a boon to my existence. I'd love to be able to help both him and Shane (ideally, Jojamart closing would lead to Shane getting a job at Pierre's, and Pierre taking some days off, spending more time with his wife, while Shane works the store enough to have it open every day), but if you ask me to choose between helping out Pierre, the hardworking family man or the alcoholic guy whose conversation includes "I'll pay you money to leave me alone" or "Haven't I been rude to you enough yet?", I'll choose Pierre every time.

 

Every slime ball, douchecanoe, asshat, a-hole, jerk, meanie head, dick, etc have their sob stories for the reason why they are the way they are. Or that they're "misunderstood."

And I don't care at all about his excuses of why. I care that he still is.

Introduction: "Hey, it's Mr. @, the new farmer! I'm Pierre, owner of the local general store.^Hey, it's Ms. @, the new farmer! I'm Pierre, owner of the local general store.#$b#If you're looking for seeds, my shop is the place to go. I'll also buy produce from you for a good price!#$e#A little agriculture could really inject new life into the local economy!" #!String
Mon: "Welcome! If you're looking for seeds, you've come to the right place!" #!String
Mon_inlaw_Abigail: "Hello, er... my son?$s^Hello, er... daughter?$s" #!String
Mon4: "Hi, @. Need any seeds or fruit tree saplings?" #!String
Mon4_inlaw_Abigail: "Hi, @. How's Abigail doing? The shop hasn't been the same without her..." #!String
Tue: "Sometimes I get new items in stock, so make sure to stop by every so often.#$e#It's a lot of work to run a shop.$h" #!String
Tue6: "You know, I used to be a pretty good boxer back in the day... my right hook was the stuff of legend!$h" #!String
Wed: "It's my day off today.#$e#Hmmm... what to do...$s" #!String
Wed4: "When I was younger I always had something interesting to do... now I find myself just wasting my time whenever I'm not at work.$s" #!String
Thu: "I'm happy to buy any produce off you.#$b#I'll give you a fair price, of course!" #!String
Thu2: "I really do appreciate your business, Mr. @. I've been having a harder and harder time turning a decent profit.^I really do appreciate your business, Ms. @. I've been having a harder and harder time turning a decent profit." #!String
Thu8: "#$1 pierre2#Does Abigail look anything like me? Don't tell my wife, but sometimes I wonder if I'm really the father.$k$s#$e#Don't tell my wife, but I hate to cook dinner." #!String
Fri: "#$1 pierreJoja#Business has been slow since Joja moved into town. It's hard to compete with their selection.$k$s#$e#Hi there. Is your farm doing well?#$e#Maybe a few of my seeds will spruce things up." #!String
Sat: "If you find any wild produce, I'll take it off your hands for a reasonable price." #!String
Sat8: "I'll tell you a secret. Sometimes, when the store is empty, I'll practice my opera singing behind the counter.$h#$e#Don't tell anyone." #!String
Sun: "#$1 pierreBlue#*sigh*... I've got those behind-the-counter blues...$k$s#$e#I wish I could go for a walk, but I can't leave the store unattended.#$e#I've heard the flowers are in bloom and the air smells great...$s" #!String
Wed6: "#$1 pierre1#*sigh*... No matter how well the business does, it's never enough to satisfy my desire for success. What's wrong with me? Maybe I'm just bored with domestic life.$s#$e#Some day I'm going to open a new shop in the city and make a killing.#$e#Unfortunately, business is so slow I can hardly save any money...$s" #!String
Thu4: "Hey, @. You're my number one customer!" #!String
summer_Mon: "I've got summer seeds available! You'd better stock up." #!String
summer_Wed: "I'm so glad to have a day off from work." #!String
summer_Thu: "Everyone's enjoying the weather instead of shopping... *sigh*" #!String
summer_Fri: "Oh, hi. Are you satisfied with the quality of my summer seeds?" #!String
summer_Sat: "Summer is a good time to eat a refreshing salad, don't you think?" #!String
summer_Sun: "Ugh... It's so hot in here." #!String
winter_Mon: "You can't grow any crops during winter... so I have no seeds to offer you.#$e#It's really going to cut into our profits." #!String
winter_Wed: "#$1 pierreDin#I'm going to surprise Caroline tonight with dinner and a bottle of Stardew Red. Don't tell anyone!$k#$e#Finally, a day of relaxation." #!String
winter_Thu: "Hi. In the mood for a litle shopping?" #!String
winter_Fri: "I mainly deal in edibles, so if you've got any ores or wood you'd better try selling them somewhere else." #!String
winter_Sat: "Is it just me or is there a cold draft in here?" #!String
winter_Sun: "If I didn't have this shop to run I would be outside right now.#$e#It would be fun to throw a snowball." #!String
fall_Mon: "Fall seeds are here! Crops don't grow in winter so this is your last shot until spring.#$b#Better go all out, huh?" #!String
fall_Thu: "It's starting to get cold outside...#$b#That means more people come into the shop to warm up... hehe." #!String
fall_Fri: "#$1 pierreMEGA#My dream is to keep opening new stores until I become extremely wealthy. hehehe.$k#$e#Hi there. Is your farm still doing well?#$e#Maybe a few of my seeds will spruce things up.$h" #!String
fall_Sat: "I'm happy to buy whatever you produce on the farm.#$e#Yes, I do resell it for a profit... but that's the benefit of being an established shop owner.#$e#Don't get any ideas..." #!String
fall_Sun: "If I didn't have this shop to run I would be outside right now...#$e#The leaves look great and the mushrooms are sprouting." #!String
Event_naga1: "Thanks, I appreciate that. Just forget you ever saw this, okay?$h#$b#...And I'll just forget that you were snooping around in my bedroom!" #!String
Event_naga2: "You would really do that to me? You're terrible.$s#$b#You shouldn't have been snooping around in my bedroom in the first place! Nosy neighbors are the worst.$a" #!String
Rainy Day: "Most people stay indoors on days like this... It's not good for business.$s" #!String

Festivals
Summer 11
Pierre: "Hmm... maybe if I get on the governor's good side he'll give my business a tax break...#$b#I wonder if he likes aged whiskey?#$e#Now if only the Mayor would stop shmoozing with him all afternoon." #!String
Summer 28
Pierre: "Psst... Make sure to swing by the shop tomorrow to get your fall seeds!" #!String
Winter 8
Pierre: "This snow is so cold I can't feel my fingers anymore...$s" #!String
Winter 25
Pierre: "My sales figures have been phenomenal lately... thanks to the Feast of the Winter Star!$h#$e#Boy, holidays are good for business. I wonder if I could invent some new ones..." #!String
Fall 16
Pierre: "My store carries the very finest quality products in the whole valley. Please, inspect my grange display closely and see for yourself!" #!String
Fall 27
Pierre: "??" #!String
Spring 13
Pierre: "Hey! How'd you get back here?$u#$b#Don't touch anything." #!String
Spring 24
Pierre: "Hey! How'd you get back here?$u#$b#Don't touch anything." #!String

46 Lines, if I counted right. I believe I got all of them.

As a shop owner in Pelican Town, it's understandable for a store clerk/owner to mainly just have dialogue around their shop. But, Pierre has a sprinkle of personality to him and it rubs off the wrong way, especially when he makes many remarks about wanting more profits/business at inappropriate times, talking about his shop or trying to manipulate a sale at inappropriate times (ie. festivals, while not actually working), but also lamenting/whining sometimes that he wishes he could go outside and do stuff non-work related.

Marnie, Gus, and Robin own their own businesses, but they never gripe and complain about profits like Pierre. If anyone were to be complaining, I'd see Marnie having the hardest time with no other farms around. But, I'm sure she's selling animal products to earn her income, but that means the farmer eventually becomes her competitor, though she's still nice to ya and never wants to punch you in the face. As for Clint. Well, he just complains for complaining's sake. About everything. I hate him, too. Lol.

It's cool to be passionate about what you do, I talk a lot about my job as a dog trainer (though usually only when asked), but it's not cool when 90% of what you say is always about your work. It's obsessive and annoying. And since the farmer and Pierre are never officially partners, farmer never gets any discounts or specials for solely buying from Pierre (well, there is a rare time when you get 500g in the mail from him for being a loyal customer, which is cool), his lines about wanting more profits, or profits/sales being low, complaining about lack of business, etc is just...unprofessional for a store owner to say to a customer.

I take it that Joja hasn't been in Pelican Town for all that long until the farmer shows up, yet before Joja, Pierre was the only general goods store. Everyone had to buy from him, except for the two days of the traveling merchant, but her prices are usually higher (like Joja's) and she is of no real competition. He has never actually helped out the town, never helped fix the community up such as the community center, bridge, bus, mine cart, etc. Pierre pockets all of his profits. If he's been in business for that long of a time, he knows how to make profit despite what little overhead he may have. He employees no one else, his help is his family. If anything, I wonder why Joja hasn't closed its doors when it hardly has any customers except Pam and Jodi and just by their business and employing two of the town's young adults and some girl, it's impossible for them to be making any kind of profit.

Pierre gets business from two other major store owners: Gus and Marnie, which both can be seen in his store shopping many different times. He shouldn't be hurting for money that badly. I'm sure he makes enough that he could offer Sam and/or Shane twenty-five cents more than they make at Joja, thus he can have more free time to do what he wants or be with his family while also deal a slight blow to Joja. (Not like Joja has a lot of potential employees to hire in a small town when most people don't like them)

Wed6: "#$1 pierre1#*sigh*... No matter how well the business does, it's never enough to satisfy my desire for success. What's wrong with me? Maybe I'm just bored with domestic life.$s#$e#Some day I'm going to open a new shop in the city and make a killing.#$e#Unfortunately, business is so slow I can hardly save any money...$s" #!String
fall_Fri: "#$1 pierreMEGA#My dream is to keep opening new stores until I become extremely wealthy. hehehe.$k#$e#Hi there. Is your farm still doing well?#$e#Maybe a few of my seeds will spruce things up.$h" #!String

Pierre's basically the pupil stage of Joja and he says so himself. And to say you're maybe bored of domestic life even though you're a married man with a daughter? That's pretty messed up. Practically saying you're bored of being a husband and a father. What a dick.

And if we are to feel sorry for anyone with marital problems, we'll be feeling sorry for a lot of people, lol. They do have the option to either try to work things out or get divorced. Of course, it's just a game and all. But, it is hard for me to feel sorry for people that have solutions to their problems but do not take them.

As for Morris and Joja, Morris is a store manager. Most store managers are paid a strict salary and I don't believe they get commissions. So, Morris doesn't actually fill his pockets with what tiny bit of profits Joja may make in Pelican Town (still think it's impossible that they make any profits at all). Morris is purely a puppet, a scapegoat for Joja with no real dialogue. He does what he does or gets terminated. Least, if you take the Joja route, they turn the community center into something beneficial with services to fix up the town instead of magical jellybeans doing it. (I personally prefer the magical jellybeans)

And, in conclusion after a long-winded analysis...

Pierre comes across, at least to me, as a self-entitled slime ball. Is he 100% slime ball? Nah, nobody's 100% slime ball, except an actual slime ball. He has his decent moments, but they're buried in his obsession of greed.

Death to the capitalistic pig-dog!

 

Emphasis mine.

To the first point, saying that he wants to do non-work related stuff makes sense, the guy works 6 days a week and almost never gets to go outside while the sun is up. It shows that as hollow as his life may be he wishes there was more to it, and that he needs help. We'll revisit that in a moment.

To the second point, he's not just a shopkeep, he's a guy in a town of less than 50 people. He's not talking about his business being slow to a customer, he's talking about it with a friend and fellow self employed businessman. It makes sense that he would do so, and I disagree about it being unprofessional.

In terms of his profits or lack thereof, he specifically says they're low and he can't save up any money. Why is this? Well, that's because he is the sole income earner! Caroline does nothing to earn money, or to help. Abigail does nothing to earn money, or to help. Abigail is paying for online college classes. Ever wonder where the money comes from? So he's the sole breadwinner in a family of 3 wherein his adult daughter is going to college. If you've ever singlehandedly run a small business and paid for your entire family with the profits from it, I can readily accept your judgements regarding how much profits he "should" be making. Otherwise I see him as a guy who is struggling to keep his head above water and provide for his family (backed up by his dialogue) with zero support from anyone in doing so.

In terms of help from his family, instead of Caroline hanging out with Jodi and Kent, she *could* be manning the store, while Pierre actually gets to go outside and enjoy that weather, or get a break from the heat, or whatever else. Instead, she is flying free while he is trapped (literally and figuratively) in that store day after day. No wonder that's where all his thoughts and attention are, the store is literally his life. His help *could* be his family, but it's not.

If you're going to point fingers at the useless town folk who never improve anything, look no further than Robin. She's the miracle carpenter, if you're not employing her she's just standing around. How much time and effort do you think it would have taken her (and how little wood!) to fix those bridges? To restore (or expand, in miracle tardis fashion) the community center? Moreover she not only has the time, the resources (unlimited amounts of wood and stone), with literally nothing better to do, she has an inventor husband to help with any aspects she struggles with.

When you become extremely wealthy, what do you get to do? Hire help. Retire. Take time off. Time is money, and Pierre desperately lacks time. Getting money buys him his life back and gets him out of the hellhole that is his store. He's more trapped than Shane could ever be because he has a family that's relying on him. Look at Pierre's schedule:

7:00 AM Pierre's Home Wakes up and walks around in his home.
80 AM Pierre's General Store Walks to the counter and prepares to open up his store.
9:00 AM Pierre's General Store Opens his general store for business.
5:00 PM Pierre's General Store Leaves the store counter and walks around in his home.
7:00 PM Pierre's Home Continues to walk around in his home.
9:00 PM Pierre's Home Continues to walk around in his home.
11:00 PM Pierre's Home Goes to bed for the night.

Can you see why he might be bored of that life? I understand your attitude, but the whole "how dare he be dissatisfied with his life, he has a wife and daughter to think about!" doesn't fly in my book. It's not like he's saying he wants to leave his wife or daughter, or that he's dissatisfied with them. He's dissatisfied with his life. He needs more variety, more challenge, more adventure in it. That's not an indictment on his family, just reality for him. Opening a new store, opening many stores, becoming the head of a Joja like corporation isn't inherently evil. Success, and desiring success, is to be lauded in my opinion, not indicted. If he runs the rest of his stores like he runs Pierre's, it should be a fine chain of shops, and I wish him the best of luck in that.

 

Robin has a shop selling furniture and recipes for crafting outside of carpentry projects, and she sells materials. I'm not sure everyone in town goes around chopping around trees like you do. She's also very passionate about her work and she loves what she does, profit or not. Like Demetrius, she kinda picks favorites (she seems to favor Sebastian) but she never really gave me the impression that she neglects Maru and she still spends a lot of time with Demetrius. I think Robin and Pierre are very, very, VERY different.

translation: pls don't bring my beautiful precious red-haired mother-in-law into this, she is too good for this world ;-;

 

It seems that we are forgetting one person who is the biggest slimeball in the town and that is Pam.

- Every night she is at the bar getting wasted
- She is emotionally abusive of Penny
- She is a mooch. When there is a festival and there is no free food, Pam complains that there is no food. If I recall, Pam even says she is only at certain festivals because she enjoys free food.
- She is willing to get kids intoxicated for a laugh. Again with one of the spring festivals she gloats she put something "special" in the punch
- She holds a grudge. If you beat her at the Fishing festival she is still mad at you at the Star Light festival.'

I am sure there is more, but nothing is coming to me right now.

 

You guys have completely forgotten about Gunther.

While it is understandable he's cooping up inside the library maybe to prevent another heist of important items, can't he said anything else beside sending us away to find more artifacts? Granted he rewarded us for our hard-work, but jeez.

All work and no play make Gunther a gunk and slimey boy.

 

I always figured Gunther didn't leave the library once you started bringing in artifacts because he's not only making sure they stay there, but he's researching them. Considering that he doesn't seem to have any help in researching them, and that Pelican Town is mostly ignored except for the Joja Mart, he's really the only person studying things that we know of. And that includes things like the existence of Dwarves (Dwarfs? Which is the plural for SDV?) and possible other cultures that have been forgotten. Seriously, once you bring him the Dwarf scrolls, he makes a translation of the language by himself, is the impression I got.

 

Your first point: If he desperately needs help, the solution is there: Either hire help or man up and make an ultimatum to Abigail that as long as she lives under his roof that she has to help out with the shop.

Second one: That's assuming if we're building up friendship points with him. Almost all of his dialogue is not dependent upon how many hearts you have with him, so even with zero hearts, when you're nothing but strangers, he'll say those things. It's one thing if you're good friends with him, it comes out as unprofessional or inappropriate otherwise. Of course, it's all subjective anyways, based upon the player. But, it's always been an awkward situation when a cashier, who has a familiar face but we never developed a friendship, says something too personal.

In terms of his profit...: Never ran my own business, but have had to support a family of three and it is indeed rough, though I find it safe in assuming that Pierre makes a lot more than I did at that time. Why is that? Because, besides Joja who is overpriced, he sells essentials for cooking. Unless all the town folks are eating uncooked vegetables and fruits, or having just plain fish. They could be buying meals from Gus, but where do we see Gus often shopping at? Pierre's. So, I find it safe to assume Gus gets all his supplies from Pierre. Also, I think it's safe to assume most of the town is too. As for Pierre, feeding his family must be ridiculously cheap, since it's common business practice to buy low and sell high. And the only two families that don't shop at Pierre's is Jodi's and Pam's, as far as we know. So, it's pretty hard to believe he's having that much trouble. Especially when Jodi's family of four is getting by, with no complaint, off a humble salary that the military must pay. (They don't really pay much to their soldiers)

Agreed on Caroline, but I wonder has he even stepped up and asked her for help? He seems like he's pretty submissive. But, she's still an asshat for either ignoring or being oblivious to her husband's troubles.

If we make more threads of each individual town folk, it would be fun to break them down into how incompetent they are with helping out a town that desperately needs fixing up. And what's Lewis doing with the tax money? Hardly any roads to keep repaired, we see how local government buildings are "well funded." Hm...We need an investigation. If Marnie isn't selling animal products, maybe he pays her mortgage and stuff for naughty time.

I disagree with the last part, since he specifically says "Maybe I'm just bored with domestic life." Being bored means you lack interest, that what use to satisfy you no longer does. Domestic life is specifically defined as having a household, a family life. So, when he says that phrase, it's pretty easy to understand exactly what he means. "Maybe I'm just bored of my family life." Which makes him a dick. Lol. Now, if he were to say maybe he's just bored with how life is currently, he wouldn't be specifying just his family. If he were to say he was bored with life at Pelican Town, nothing is really stopping him from moving to the city. With a wife and a daughter that do not have jobs, they really wouldn't have much of a choice. 'Course, that would make 'em a dick, too, for leaving without them wanting to.

Of course, corporations aren't inherently evil, except for Hobby Lobby, but they are ruthless in their business. And, within the game, CA paints Joja menacingly, and with Pierre being akin to Joja, a stroke of the brush is across him, as well. Though subjective, wealth and success/desiring of success isn't a bad thing, either. Can be quite good, but that's not all there is to look forward to. In my subjective opinion, as in many others', his first priority should be either improving his family life (by hiring someone to run the register to spend more time with them) or just finally being done with a crappy marriage.

Only way I could see him having financial troubles is if most of the town shopped at Joja. But, maybe, it has more to do with that secret we found in his bedroom. He possibly has a porn addiction and those were his magazine subscriptions. Lots of them. He probably also pays for a lot of memberships to see pixelated bewbies on the internet. I wouldn't put it past Haley to offer additional services to people willing to pay. All that warpaint and that dark room makes some alarm bells go off. And Pierre and Haley do appear to always avoid each other.

*Puts on Sherlock Holmes hat* My dear Watson, we have ourselves a mystery! *puts pipe in mouth and blows out bubbles* I love these things. The bubbles. And, well, I guess the mysteries are cool too. But, mainly the bubbles. *blows more bubbles*