What luxuries are you cutting out to combat the cost of living?

[Feelingthepinch22]

I didn't have too many but I've started to cut out my Butlers hot chocolate, weekly browse in primary, not cutting out my weekly few glasses of wine but have switched brands saving 3 euro, cut out the hairdressers completely & have started colouring my own hair (8 euro compared to 60 at the salon) no more meals out or takeaways, no heat on when the dc are at school...

Funkypickle I do understand the overheads of a business but all businesses have overheads not just hairdressers. The man’s barbers do great haircuts for £20 and they colour as well.

At my visit there were no magazines and the coffee was instant, it was a no frills experience accept for the cost and the fact that the colour didn’t take.
Re up selling you may get offered a choice of treatments while your head is over the sink, they may range in price from £15 to £60. Not really the time to discuss the price and various merits of the treatments.

We won’t need to cut out many luxuries, mainly reducing the amount we save and cutting takeaways to every other week rather than the every week it seems to have become since lockdown.

@Funkypickle

Cutting back on heating, changed broadband providers, doing one weekly shop. Buying more own brands and basics. And not much else. I will continue to support the service industies. Ie. Food, leisure and beauty.

I'm a hairdresser, and this thread scares me. The hair industry is already suffering with around 25% of clients not having returned to salons since the pandemic. Average number of visits per client per year has declined to approx 4 visits per year instead of 6-8 visits. This is lower than the last recession. This will further rock the industry and push prices up even more. Minimum wage and product costs are contributing to many salons and professionals struggling to turn any profit at all.

By all means look at your budgets but please choose your services carefully, our high streets are dying. They need your support.

Sorry it scare you but salon hair cuts are so expensive nowadays. As I said above I won’t need to cut out many luxuries but I don’t use hair salons much in the first place as there’s no way I’d want to spend £100 every couple of months just on hair cuts and colour, that’s £600 a year! I actually can’t believe how much some people spend on this whilst struggling to save or pay for basics.

I don't have any luxuries! Never yet had my nails done/any waxing/expensive hair treatments (use a box dye, have my hair cut about every 4 months). I shop at Asda (may start going to Aldi). I could probably stop having dinner at the pub every Wednesday, but it's my one treat.

We can cut back on eating out if needed. Thankfully we don't run our finances to the wire and are conscious that our money being spent in restaurants and pubs pay's peoples wages. We will have review if things go up much more though

Reduced heating, cut back on takeways, buying cheaper meat (still high welfare but from a high-end supermarket instead of farm shop). I buy whole chickens and cut them up. Cut up joints and put in stir fries which is a lot healthier than meat-centred meals anyway.

We still have many 'luxuries'. Takeaway once a week, running the dryer, cleaner. However... that's about it really. No new clothes, beauty, etc etc. DP and I share the same toiletries bought in bulk 5L off Amazon.

My desire to 'do' things has evaporated after 2 years of WFH (and counting). Most friends moved away, can't be arsed to make new ones. Most restaurant food (apart from my few favourites) is crap compared to my own cooking and I don't like alcohol. So don't have to try too hard. We're lucky to not be on the breadline but at the same time saving for a house...

Oh and also I don't care about travel or holidays...

Cutting out take aways and all treaty food bits for now buying cleaning products ect in bulk.

Running a salon is now no where near as profitable as it was pre pandemic. I am barely breaking even most weeks. If I see a 2k profit this year it will be a surprise. And, my situation is not unique. So many salons are struggling to keep their doors open. Or operate at full capacity because the money isn't coming in to pay wages.

I couldn't tell why you've had more salons open in your town. There may have been a preceived gap in the market.

The prices you have quoted seem very, very reasonable to me. Again, you are paying for time and the stylists technical ability. If you have a colour, you will likely have two appointment slots booked, one for your colour and the other for your finish or cut. That time needs to be accounted for.

The cost is becoming prohibitive in running high street businesses. Over 26000 (yep you read that correctly) high street retailers, chains, businesses have closed in 2020 and the first half of 2021. This is the biggest decline of the high street in over a decade. Tens of thousands of jobs have been lost through this. And this is down to many factors.

We need to preserve the high street. Please use your local services and businesses. Keep them going. We need them now and in the future.

Employment helps the economy overall. Its a fairly simple principle.

Sorry, if I derailed the thread. It's something that is very close to my heart.

"I'm a hairdresser, and this thread scares me. The hair industry is already suffering with around 25% of clients not having returned to salons since the pandemic. Average number of visits per client per year has declined to approx 4 visits per year instead of 6-8 visits. This is lower than the last recession. This will further rock the industry and push prices up even more. Minimum wage and product costs are contributing to many salons and professionals struggling to turn any profit at all.

y all means look at your budgets but please choose your services carefully, our high streets are dying. They need your support."

"Sorry it scare you but salon hair cuts are so expensive nowadays. As I said above I won’t need to cut out many luxuries but I don’t use hair salons much in the first place as there’s no way I’d want to spend £100 every couple of months just on hair cuts and colour, that’s £600 a year! I actually can’t believe how much some people spend on this whilst struggling to save or pay for basics."

I agree. Whilst it saddens me too, a trip to the salon is absolutely a luxury and whilst any decent human hates to see someone's business go under, if you're 'most people', supporting a total stranger's business isn't going to be a priority, especially when that business is based on non essential vanity.

I wonder what will happen with dog groomers? Different to humans as it involves animal welfare but I have dog grooming friends that have found that people are leaving more time between appointments. They then have had to charge more anyway because the dogs are in more of a mess!

Very savvy..well done.

Going somewhere on dhs day off on the weekend for “a change” (about our only luxury, don’t drink, go out, have takeaways, buy clothes), dh has given up a big part of his hobby (birding) so no going on twitches, just local walks.

Cutting back on petrol by only shopping once a week. Not enjoying it as I'd got into the habit of fresh bakery goods, fruit and veg etc every couple of days. Also cut back on the heating drastically ...again, not liking it.

@Funkypickle

Cutting back on heating, changed broadband providers, doing one weekly shop. Buying more own brands and basics. And not much else. I will continue to support the service industies. Ie. Food, leisure and beauty.

I'm a hairdresser, and this thread scares me. The hair industry is already suffering with around 25% of clients not having returned to salons since the pandemic. Average number of visits per client per year has declined to approx 4 visits per year instead of 6-8 visits. This is lower than the last recession. This will further rock the industry and push prices up even more. Minimum wage and product costs are contributing to many salons and professionals struggling to turn any profit at all.

By all means look at your budgets but please choose your services carefully, our high streets are dying. They need your support.

No chance of me trying to cut my own hair!! Love my hairdresser and would have for his salon to close so will keep going. Rather have nice hair than painted nails etc.

Hate not have

Please don’t get of pet insurance if you can afford to keep it going,
We have claimed over £12k for one of our cats over the past three years.
We’d have felt awful if we’d have had to put her to sleep instead.

Skipping the kids gymnastics activities for the spring, we have an annual parks pass so will go cycling /hiking there instead.

Cutting back on wine.

Takeaway, eating out and costa. Tumble dryer use when possible. Heating is off now no matter how cold it gets.

I’m hoping to keep my gym membership and contact lenses. And Netflix.

Keeping: Hairdressers- she is excellent.
Gym membership too, need it for my mental health.

Going: cleaner, can manage it if organised, extra beauty treatments so nails etc. Will be a bit more careful with my supermarket shop and am more mindful of using up what I already have in the fridge.

So many sacrifices been made, already, for a situation that's been a hot topic for a whole month.

Nothing yet - but I appreciate that we are lucky enough not to need to cut back yet
Have a decent amount of savings - no mortgage and only one child who’s grown up so no childcare cost .
No debt & rarely drink & don’t smoke

The bloody dog probably cost the most at around £100 a month with insurance and food and stuff but he’s worth it

I'm also keeping my hairdresser as I have very thick hair and a complex cut.
I'm going into work much less and am trying to use my pre pandemic work wardrobe when I go in.
I'm trying to wear out my clothes (which takes ages) and have a 2 out 1 In system.
Can't be bothered to sit in reastsurants or pubs and have cut down home drinking.

I won’t stop going to the hairdressers, it’s every 6 weeks and £45 for a trim and blow dry and that’s my only luxury.
I only do online food shopping with Asda, don’t drive anywhere unnecessarily and I can’t remember the last time I had a takeaway or a visit to the pub. We occasionally drink at home but certainly not regularly.
I won’t cut back on heating, we’re retired and it’s already at a barely comfortable temperature, the wood burner will be a huge help when it’s installed as I will then reduce using the central heating.
My new-to-me car is an eco boost and will probably do me for many years I hope!
I am as economy conscious as I can be and as frugal as I want to be at the moment.

Heating is now off unless it’s really cold. It’s certainly off all day whilst the dc are at school. We are lucky though in that we have a wood burner and a good supply of wood.

Stretching hairdressers appointments. This is a bit self defeating though since I know my hairdresser is feeling the pinch with lots of clients cutting back. She’s therefore started doing two clients at a time with the result that my hair has been less than great at the last two appointments I’ve had with her. Doing this has meant she can close one day a week and save on overheads (she works elsewhere in a hospitality job on this day).

Fewer takeaways and I’m going to have a look at the streaming services since we seem to have everything and there’s so much content available just with one.

Fewer meals out. They’re ridiculously expensive and often disappointing. For the cost of two of us eating out we could cook for a whole group of friends at home.

Just watching the news and interest rate rises are predicted today in an attempt to curb peoples spending..

Fewer meals out. They’re ridiculously expensive and often disappointing. For the cost of two of us eating out we could cook for a whole group of friends at home

A friend in the UK said the same several months ago. Instead they have far fewer meals out, but at a higher end, with more equivalence between price and quality.

Should say the same is happening here in Melbourne: the hollowed out middle. In this case restaurants.