Bristol businesses have no way of escaping the hard-hitting consequences of the cost of living crisis getting worse by the day in the UK. Retailers, restaurants and other businesses are trying to be as accommodating as they can for returning customers, whilst also facing the ramifications of these rising costs.
Three businesses in Gloucester Road have been hit by the cost of living in many ways. Both an increase in bills and a loss of profit due to customers not spending as much has caused a difficult and troubling time for them.
Wild Leaf, a picturesque plant shop selling all kinds of house and garden foliage first opened in August 2017. Owner Tya Shannon explains how the cost of living has impacted the average transaction value. “Every purchase is more budgeted,” Tya revealed, “people are coming in and still buying things, but they’re spending less."
With winter looming, the true impact of rising bills is yet to hit us, it is feared. The lack of need for heating in the summer means that businesses haven’t necessarily felt the full impact of these escalating costs. Heating is imperative for Wild Leaf over the colder months in order to keep their stock alive, so the rising bills over the winter is a major concern for them.
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Tya said: “[Winter] is where we do use a lot of energy because we have to heat the place 24 hours a day, otherwise plants can get cold shock and die”.
Restaurants and bars along Gloucester Road are also feeling the impact. The Hideout has noticed a similar change in customers' spending habits. Manager Ella Savage acknowledges the decrease in overall spending. “Obviously people are a little bit more reluctant to come because their disposable incomes are a lot lower," she said.
Not only are the customers struggling, Ella explains their electricity bills have “gone through the roof”. The rising bills as well as the hesitant spending of customers has been a cause for concern. “It’s kind of like a catch 22," she said. "Obviously we are struggling as well. We’re not earning as much. We’re not being able to take as much profit as we’d like because people aren’t willing to spend their disposable income. So it’s affecting us in every aspect – business wise and also our own personal life”.
To boost business in times of hardship, The Hideout has tried to offer deals in order to accommodate for the escalating costs.
Ella said: “We’re offering lunchtime deals to try and accommodate for people that are struggling. But in doing that we are taking a bit of loss on our profit margins. We’re just trying to encourage people to come here and be quite understanding of everyone’s situation”
One Gloucester Road business that has majorly felt the impact of the cost of living to the point of closure, is T & PA Murray. This award-winning butchers saw an eye-watering 300% increase on their electricity bill, causing them to shut down and sell.
Mr Murray told our reporter Mark Taylor at the time: “Trade went back to normal levels after Covid but with all these increased costs it becomes unsustainable as a business. I didn’t want somebody to take it on with those costs and end up struggling so as I was planning to retire anyway, it made more sense to close and sell the building.”
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