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Inflation and your business or charity Dec 22

ended 13. December 2022

On Wednesday of next week at 07:00, we're getting the latest inflation data, which will dominate the news. Inflation is currently at 11.1%, way above the 2% target. Selection of Qs for you. Please note: there will be a separate alert about the Bank of England's rate strategy and whether it's right or wrong so NO macroeconomic responses here PLEASE.

  • How is your business or charity being affected by inflation, e.g. reduced customers/clients/sales, increased raw material costs, soaring energy bills, staff asking for pay rises, etc?
  • What are you doing to try and counteract inflation, e.g. upping prices for your products or services, or does that risk losing business?
  • What's been worse for your business or charity financially? The pandemic or the current economic crisis comprising rising interest rates, a contracting economy and soaring inflation?
  • How are inflation and the broader cost of living crisis (and economic climate) impacting your mental health?
  • How confident are you feeling right now as a business or charity owner?

Any other thoughts, jot them down. There is now a word count limit of 175 words. If you're a Premium user, your response will be edited by a seasoned hack.

12 responses from the Newspage community

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Premium
Debbie Porter
Managing Director at Destination Digital Marketing
Right now is like waiting for an axe to drop and hoping it won’t drop on your particular head. I work with a charity called Arts Derbyshire, and they are scratching around for every penny to continue to do their work. In the context of a recession, the word “arts“ is a trigger for immediate rejection when fundraising, but Art Derbyshire supports hundreds of people with Alzheimer’s and dementia, people with mental health problems and who are socially isolated, and thousands through their social prescribing project in conjunction with Public Health. They are at the forefront of providing services on the softer end of the scale that the NHS can no longer provide, and if things don't improve they too may no longer be able to continue. It’s a heartbreaking situation.
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Gaynor Lockwood Edwards
Small business owner at Quirky Cactus
Things are incredibly bleak at the moment. Costs are rising across the board so I’m not feeling confident at all that my little business will survive. I’ve been self-employed designing, making and selling my crochet creations for the past five years. I have applied for an overdraft and started to use a credit card in anticipation of a really terrible January. Sales this December compared to last are down 64%. Online sales have been few and far between due to the cost of living crisis and postal strikes. Face-to-face sales at craft fairs have also plummeted. Plenty of people attend them but they're simply not spending as normal. For example, in the Christmas fair last weekend I took less than a third of what I normally take in the run-up to Christmas. As a single income household, this new reality is terrifying.
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Samuel Mather-Holgate
Independent Financial Adviser at Mather and Murray Financial
I'm still getting over the shock of our last energy bill, which came in 400% higher than our last one. Thankfully, we can absorb this cost without having to make increases to client costs, however the less profit we make the less we can invest in new jobs. It doesn't help that on top of sky-high inflation the Government is penalising us further with massive tax hikes. Probably not the best strategy to inspire growth and create jobs, but I'm sure the Tories know what they are doing.
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Premium
Lily Shippen
Managing Director at Lily Shippen
The pandemic felt far worse for us as a business, so while things are bad, they're not as bad as they've been. Unlike in the pandemic, there are still companies hiring, and business is out there; it's just harder to find it. We have to be relentless in our sales approach and dig deep. As bizarre as it may sound, I’m feeling confident.
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Ian Hepworth
Director at Funding Solutions UK Limited
Businesses are caught in the perfect storm of soaring costs and reduced cashflow. Inflation is hiking up costs but clients and customers are slower to pay, while suppliers are tightening credit limits and want paying quicker. To compound this issue even further, supply chain disruption means that many businesses are having to carry more stock, which soaks up cash. Many businesses are suffering a serious cash flow crisis. We are seeing more and more businesses seeking working capital solutions.
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Zaid Patel
Director at Highcastle Estates
The best way to counteract inflation is to generate business. The mistake I made during the lockdown was not pushing Highcastle Estates on Social Media as we should've. During this recession, we're not going to make the same mistake, and we'll educate our audience. We have a plan, and we're pretty confident that our plan will work. This will include starting a podcast, more content on Youtube, TikTok and Instagram - and of course Linkedin.
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Michael Thomas
MD at DARWIN.vip Business Academy
The rate of inflation means increased supplier rates. Our costs have gone up by 30%. I know that I’ll need to increase prices accordingly, but it’s something I’ve been putting off, as I don’t feel it’s right when so many clients are already being hit hard. The pandemic was worse for my business than the financial crisis has been so far, but we don’t know how deep the recession will be, or how long it will last. It’s inevitable for life’s pressures to have an impact on how you feel. Things may get worse if inflation continues to soar and so it’s important to focus on the positives. Networking is one of the most consistently profitable ways of growing a business – with the academy, we make a difference to people’s lives. I’m confident that we have the plan in place to continue growing in 2023 and beyond.
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Austyn Johnson
Founder at Mortgages For Actors
A huge percentage of people already understand the value of a good mortgage broker. In the next couple of years, while things are unstable, this percentage will increase. Imagine walking into a bank and getting a mortgage, just to find out after that a broker could have saved you £200 a month for the next 5 years? Heartbreaking. Income protection will be a must, if you haven't got any in place, get some quotes and action them. Especially if you are self-employed. If you get injured or sick and lose a contract, that could be the start of a very slippery slope for you. As inflation struggles, we, as the UK workforce, need to help each other and pass the wealth around. Use local workers, use people like brokers and then the money you save, put that towards helping another.
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Legend
Jenny Blyth
Small business owner at Storm in a Teacup Gifts
Absolutely nothing Rishi Sunak and this Government does helps micro businesses. I work from home, I don’t have employees and I don’t have a premises of my own. Micro businesses have had no relief from the constant downpour of crises and are out in the metaphorical and literal cold.
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Gary Boakes
Director at Verve Financial
I'd be lying if I said I hadn’t woken up in a cold sweat and panic a few times over the past few months. It is so easy to doubt every decision you make as a business owner and that can take its toll mentally. Recognising that your mental wellbeing is struggling is the first step, the next is ensuring your own self-care and seeking help if required. After all, our mental strength is going to be needed to get through the worst cost of living crisis in 40 years.
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Legend
Robert Bolohan
Co-Founder at Lotuly
Even though our business is remote and we don't lease a majestic office in Central London, sales are falling and finding new customers in the past two months has become a lot more difficult. This shows other companies are suffering too and marketing departments are cutting spend at the speed of light. For this reason, we switched part of our services to a subscription model and increased our prices according to inflation so we can retain several loyal customers. I'd be lying to myself if I said I am ok and doesn't affect me at all, but it does. My wife and I poured our soul into this business so we must stay positive.
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Legend
Sara Hall
Founder at Lilibet & Phil Publishing House
Launching a business in the current economic climate feels like flying an air balloon directly at a hurricane. Sales are down across the board and I spend most of my time reassuring creative business owners that this isn't their fault, and it will get better. I've seen a disturbing rise in depression within my community, with artists taking blow after blow to their confidence. It's hard to stay positive when the situation seems to get worse day after day. Passing on the huge increases in material costs, energy and postage costs is just not an option for a small, handmade business, leaving creatives facing closure.