Cost of Living Crisis

[TwinklingFairyLights]

Is this not having much of an impact yet? I was in central Manchester on Friday and restaurants, pubs and bars were all full. I phoned to book a haircut and my hairdresser is fully booked for 2 weeks. I thought discretionary spending would be reducing by now but I can't see it.

Very odd when the news doesn’t match up with reality

tbh it hasn't really hit yet & remember data is always behind but people are starting to reduce spending.

"The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said total retail spending among its members - mostly large chains and supermarkets - was 0.3% lower than a year earlier, compared with 3.1% annual growth in March."

Oh gosh, how tough for you. 10 weeks instead of 8 & no pedicures. However will you cope??

it's like having to explain cutter up pear to a toddler.

maybe they are at the hairdressers after 10 whole weeks too.

maybe they've chosen different discretionary spending to cut than you.

Maybe they have a fixed mortgage, fixed utility bills & don't use much fuel... who knows, but perhaps they have a good contingency fund & want to live a little after covid & before they need to tighten their belts.

your post really is tone deaf.

In 2019 when labour proposed a higher tax band you had to earn over £73500 to be in the top 5% of earners. I don’t believe this has dropped to £50000.

Retail sales fell by 0.3% in April according to this so it would probably not be that noticeable looking at the average high street
www.theguardian.com/business/2022/may/10/cost-of-living-crisis-slows-uk-consumer-spending-but-holiday-bookings-take-off?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

Part of the problem is the huge level of inequality. There are lots of people still spending but also growing numbers of those who can't afford the basics. By next winter the impacts will be more pronounced particularly if the pound continues to fall.

It is interesting that world gasoline prices are no higher than they were in 2011, what has made the difference is the £/$ rate.

I think that you're viewing the general public as a homogeneous entity. And it's not.

Those already in poverty/on the breadline, would have been unlikely to have been in the hairdressers etc to start with. So you're unlikely to be viewing their lifestyle changes.

Likewise those who were perhaps managing may still be using the discretionary services you've mentioned but less frequently or with a view that they're seeing how things go.

We're still planning on our holiday etc, but I'm reducing the frequency of our shops to try a d reduce costs whilst having to pay additional costs for my child, related to their disabilities, which are not funded. So you won't see that my discretionary spending changes because I wouldn't have been in the bars, hairdressers etc that frequently to start with. Doesn't mean that we're not watching what we spend.

If you are on £50k you are in the top 5% of earners in the UK.

The issue is salaries have been so devalued & data is skewed as it only really counts PAYE income. Salary is not really a reflection of how well off someone is. Whether they own a home & when they bought will be important.

I'm waiting to see what the local event raised this year compared to pre covid (was cancelled for 2 years). It was busy but not packed and a lot more stuff being packed back into cars/vans than there usually is at the end.

I have various Dd to charities, not large amounts, but they do add up. They'll be the last thing to go, I'm hoping it doesn't come to that.

Absolutely @killerqueue some notion of wealth is key especially as people whose mortgages are about to float or re-fix at a much higher rate are going to face much more pain on that dimension at least, whereas pensioners and others sitting on housing wealth but on lower incomes are going to feel food and heating pain.

May need some targeted measures

I have my hair dry cut coloured at home, yes less new clothes and going out, haircuts stay def.
i have an ‘80s wedge, lots of layers

Two full
Time workers plus an extra job each to try and get us back upto bearable after two years of covid battering finances.

The second job each started last October and was hopefully going to take off by March however with the cost of living going up as much as it has in every area we are still having to work the extras.

It's exhausting. It's demeaning. It's hard work. It's a constant juggle of keeping house and being there for our dc.

It's just very very hard right now.
We didn't have takeaways and hair cuts anyway or eating out so we haven't been able to cut bak on things like luxuries we haven't had for two years anyway.

If feels like an endless pit of seven day working weeks

Never did I ever think we would have to work two jobs each just to tick everything over and clothe our dc.

It's a horrendous feeling.

We earn slightly too much for any help but not enough to live like we were.

Although I agree those on benefits are feeling the pinch those that have their rent and council tax paid know they're roof is covered each month.

I'm around much richer people in my work life and it's shocking what they moan about including my boss who thinks having to give up every weekend expensive meal out and go twice a month is not fair.

The one who's also just spent a month in a foreign country but is pleading poverty in a daily basis and claiming wages can't be paid because the minimum wage went up

@wtfisgoingonhere21 sorry to hear things are so bad

@beechhues

Thank you for the 💐

Yes it's pretty crap right now and we both work so I hate to think what it's like for some that can't work or are carers it's shocking.

Just had another car bill of £300 so that's wiped out the last month of extra working in one go and I need the car for the second job.

It's like one step forward and ten back at the minute.

I can see how people can get so depressed and sad all the time I really can.

It's even more tiring trying to slap on a smile and chit chat so I'm totally drained by the end of the week

I know we should all be grateful for what we do have and I really am but it's hard sometimes to remember that when your wading through treacle.

I have a really shit work situation with a toxic boss Aswell going on but after many years here it's making it very hard to step away.

I agree that running a car has gone horribly expensive. Food petrol and car costs are where I am feeling the pinch. I cannot work however if I have no car n or can I parent d's properly as he needs army cadets and camping trips plus D of E trips.

Definitely this.

I'm in the Lakes this weekend and it's absolutely heaving. The roads are full, cafes and pubs are rammed. As @MarshaBradyo said, it looks like a post pandemic boom to me.

My birthday, a couple of weeks ago, fell on a Monday and my husband took me out for lunch.
The restaurant was fully booked so no passing custom.
I'd never seen the place so packed. We'd last been there pre Covid and it was almost empty save for a few silver haired folk, like us.

This was a Monday lunchtime! Out in the sticks!

The customers were mainly youngish folk , maybe in their 20s or 30s. We thought this was very odd. We even remarked whether these young things had got jobs!

Clearly, WFH is suiting the working population or people don't work and have money to burn.

My point being that there are clearly many people who can afford to just pop out to a mid-priced restaurant on a Monday lunchtime.

Yet there's my mum, on pension top-ups who is being so very careful with her heating and making very good use of a cabbage, a couple of carrots, a stock cube and a chicken thigh.
( And just to add, we do support her but she is incredibly proud.)

And again... no paragraphs! 😔

Doesn’t seem to be having much of an impact in our city either, the restaurants were really busy early Thursday evening, had to try three before we got a table.

Maybe everyone's enjoying the summer in case we have another round of covid in autumn / winter?

Well i investigated breaking our fixed rate early to refix before interests rates are forecast to peak next summer and the longer term rates aren't that much worse just yet.

Can't help that we've now got an expectation that when bad times hit the govt will bail out.

There's a sense of that too - would you put money on no covid panic this winter? Not sure if I would

I don’t think it’s that, most people have moved on ime

It’s more suppressed demand earlier, consumer confidence and cost of living not having as much impact on higher earnings

plus savings from wfh on some days

As a country I don't think we can afford to panic over it no matter how bad the NHS gets. I don't think people would accept more government spending

No, I don't think we'd tolerate another winter with covid restrictions and it would so politically disastrous that a government with an eye to elections wouldn't touch it with a barge pole.

I feel like that but I'm in Scotland and the longer restrictions here don't seem to have hurt the SNP electorally...so I'm more pessimistic.