Well, Time for Business
Ok, so its supposed to be a business update blog.
Business in the retail industry is not good at present. Simple as that. Just heard on the radio that the Allsports chain are closing 90 odd out of around 300 stores as of tonight and this seems to be pretty much the story across the board.
Hows it affecting small businesses? The same way. They are struggling. From what I hear, the big saviour is the internet. If, like ourselves, you have a website, you can make up your losses and in fact increase your turnover. This does bring with it its own problems and does involve some form of investment, even if relatively small. But it is helping.
What is causing the big slump in the high street? Its a combination thing. A combination of higher taxes, higher petrol prices, and indeed a big increase in online sales.
Last x-mas, 30% of all x-mas shopping was done online. This has got to equate to 30% less shopping on the high street, give or take.
Petrol prices - Take a look at what percentage of your income is now spent on petrol. I would be willing to bet its a lot higher (alot) than 10 years ago. Again, money put in the petrol tank cannot be spent in the high street.
Taxes - Income tax may not have gone throught the roof under the present government but the stealth taxes/council taxes are increasing all the time - Again, as a percentage of income it means far less funds left for spending on the high street.
One final factor that hasnt come into play yet is the interest rate - a quick hike here could really spell Trouble.
So is it all doom and gloom? Well, no but it certainly aint a bed of roses and, to be honest I think its going to be getting worse before it gets better........
Business in the retail industry is not good at present. Simple as that. Just heard on the radio that the Allsports chain are closing 90 odd out of around 300 stores as of tonight and this seems to be pretty much the story across the board.
Hows it affecting small businesses? The same way. They are struggling. From what I hear, the big saviour is the internet. If, like ourselves, you have a website, you can make up your losses and in fact increase your turnover. This does bring with it its own problems and does involve some form of investment, even if relatively small. But it is helping.
What is causing the big slump in the high street? Its a combination thing. A combination of higher taxes, higher petrol prices, and indeed a big increase in online sales.
Last x-mas, 30% of all x-mas shopping was done online. This has got to equate to 30% less shopping on the high street, give or take.
Petrol prices - Take a look at what percentage of your income is now spent on petrol. I would be willing to bet its a lot higher (alot) than 10 years ago. Again, money put in the petrol tank cannot be spent in the high street.
Taxes - Income tax may not have gone throught the roof under the present government but the stealth taxes/council taxes are increasing all the time - Again, as a percentage of income it means far less funds left for spending on the high street.
One final factor that hasnt come into play yet is the interest rate - a quick hike here could really spell Trouble.
So is it all doom and gloom? Well, no but it certainly aint a bed of roses and, to be honest I think its going to be getting worse before it gets better........
posted by richandzhaoyan | 8:28 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home