To ask where all those who said that WFH would be good for business are now?

[ChampagnePuppy]

Sorry, sort of a rant.
I work in a small local foodie business in the South West. I know there is a cost of living crisis, but I also feel that WFH culture is killing us.
So many said that they would spend more in their local high streets now they were WFH but that seems to have stopped.
People are online food shopping and then not leaving their houses. Three local businesses announced they were closing this week, two bakeries and one restaurant. I can count five since Christmas which have folded.
I know a lot are feeling the pinch from gas and electric but a lot of people are just WFH, squirrelling their money away, saving and then saying 'oh that's a shame' on the Facebook posts when a business announces they're folding. Why not support them? I'm not talking about those on the breadline but those who are financially comfortable.
If you want a diverse high street, you have to support local businesses or we won't be here in a years time.

I've worked in many NHS sites now and only one hospital didn't provide tea, coffee and milk. I'm not in a big city though and think my Trust are excellent/the exception. I did say more so for offices/companies like my husband's, corporate/private sector. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I think it's a difficult one. I have stopped eating out at local cafes as I can't afford it. A few years ago it was a regular occurrence but my budget has gone down.
I am all for supporting local but some people just can't do it anymore. It's awful and things are really bad right now for the high street.

Agree with this.

The country is different. We need different things now. Mt DH works from home 100% (baring one meeting at a city an hour a way once a month). I work from home 2 days a week.,

We have saved money through not needing two cars, petrol from DH not driving 35 miles a day and both of us spend less on lunch's.

Since lock down we have had our garden decked, bought garden furniture, had wood flooring through downstairs, bought a new tent... these are all highly expensive things we couldn't do before as we couldn't afford it.

Honestly, only one of the above benefited a local business and the rest were national businesses but it was putting money into the economy that before went on petrol and cars.

We are both so much happier and have a better work life balance wfh. We don't owe any business our money, local or otherwise.

Wfh means I've gone from a £19000 a year job to a £39500 year job.

This means rather than having 0 income left over after bills, It means I have £200-£300 left, so I can spend locally.

If I worked in the office I'd not be able to afford to buy anything anyway.

Covid has changed the world and has impacted many businesses adversely

I’d say you either adapt to the new regime (delivery for example ) and tailor the business

or move into a different sector

but ranting at people for not supporting the high street isn’t going to achieve anything I’m afraid

We have to work in businesses which are struggling, pay childcare, pay travel costs and pay all the utility bills that are increasing. Those who get to work from home save on all of those, but also can't be bothered to spend money on their high streets

"Can't be bothered"??? Yeah, that's the reason.

You don't have to work in businesses which are struggling etc., you could look for a different job if it's not working for you and your family any more.

@ChampagnePuppy I didn't have a diverse local artisan foodie high street before Covid and I don't have one now.

You really need to get out of your SW bubble.

High streets have been in decline for years due to underspending by Governments and multinational organisations and/or charities stepping in when there are empty premises

I have WFH for past three years - I have no choice as my office has closed. I pay for heating my house all day plus other costs that you ignore when in the office.

If I could go to work I would take a packed lunch like I did pre-pandemic - as millions of workers do now. Spending money on "treats" was never on my radar.

What I spend my money on now is heating instead of travel. How I spend what I have left is no one's business but mine but if you can't run or adapt to changing market then the fault lies with you not my WFH.

Stop trying to be divisive and look at the real issue - there is no rush to the bottom here. People are struggling whether they WFH, work in an office or run their own business.

Exactly! More importantly, we save the environment by burning less petrol. Also it’s mad that people sit in a traffic jam, every day, for hours, it doesn’t make any sense.

It's not WFH at all IMO, it's cost of living. I don't WFH and I've massively cut down on takeaway coffees / nice cakes from the bakery etc that I would sometimes buy because of general costs going up. I've also gone back to shopping at Aldi rather than doing online food shops and some nice local bits for the same reason. If other costs get more sane again and pay rises are in line with inflation, I'll happily go back to spending more frivolously!!

We're all worse off when small businesses suffer.

Why?

Small businesses have always suffered, supermarkets, chains and department stores wiped out small independents, unless you have a niche or a captive market running a small bistro/deli has always been tough. There is now a generation who have grown up online, WFH has diversified some monetary spend locally instead of concentrated to city/town centres but the basic rules till apply, you have to offer a product or service that will attract customers.

A little boutique near me closed down last year and the owner pretty much reacted the same way the OP has, what she didn't mention was that the small one woman bands who where making all the dresses and homewares decided along with the website supplier to sell direct to the consumer for reduced price with more going direct to those who made it, without the commision and sale or return caveat.

What a lot of people call independent shop is just a small scale department store, stuff from China with a mark up in a nice setting, the identical product can be found in a similar independent shop in the next town because they have all bought it from the same wholesaler website.

I shop at Tesco because parking is free. The closest village high street to me now has council enforced pay and display parking so I don’t go there.

Blame the government for spiralling us into a recession whilst propping up the rich. I would love lunch in a little independent cafe near me, the food and setting are glorious but I can no longer spend money on things like that. Also, when you WFH….you are kind of meant to be working, not popping out for coffee and cake!

@Justanotherlurker

Why?
Small businesses have always suffered, supermarkets, chains and department stores wiped out small independents, unless you have a niche or a captive market running a small bistro/deli has always been tough. There is now a generation who have grown up online, WFH has diversified some monetary spend locally instead of concentrated to city/town centres but the basic rules till apply, you have to offer a product or service that will attract customers.
A little boutique near me closed down last year and the owner pretty much reacted the same way the OP has, what she didn't mention was that the small one woman bands who where making all the dresses and homewares decided along with the website supplier to sell direct to the consumer for reduced price with more going direct to those who made it, without the commision and sale or return caveat.
What a lot of people call independent shop is just a small scale department store, stuff from China with a mark up in a nice setting, the identical product can be found in a similar independent shop in the next town because they have all bought it from the same wholesaler website.

This👆

I've never wfh and never used the high Street whilst in work. Mainly because a 30 minute lunch break doesn't go very far, so I've adjusted taken my own. And because lots of workplaces aren't actually in the middle of, or even near, a high street.

The most I would do is call in a supermarket on the way home. Local shops were always closed by 5 anyway. The Internet was killing the high Street, long before wfh.

I have to disagree. When I worked in the city I spent so long and so much that I never bought lunch out and didn’t get to local shops because they weren’t open when I got home. WFH means I go to the local butchers, bakery etc and I cancelled my online delivery subscription about a year ago. I admit I don’t use local cafés because I’m nipping into town at lunchtime so tied for time and they’re just so expensive.

It isn’t WFH that’s making the difference, it’s the removal of “fun money” from so many middle class people’s budgets.

when the “basics” of roof over your head, heat & light and supermarket food shop have gone up in price - most people have less “fun money” to spend on treats.

it should not be a shock to anyone that those who’s income is based on people having money for non-essential things will struggle when people have considerably less money to spend on non-essential things.

It's not just 'culture' of working from home. Working from home saves so much money as well as time in commuting. I would be inclined to blame the high fuel and parking costs (and high public transport costs). I would go to the office a lot more if parking and fuel didn't cost so much and/or if there was decent public transport. It's for the same reasons I haven't visited the city centre (lack do free or cheap/easy parking/cheap public transport ) outside of work/for leisure for over a decade. Local councils keep making it more difficult to drive and park whilst at the same time not making it any cheaper for public transport. It's no wonder the high street is suffering/dying.

Completely agree with you on this.

Also live in an area with lots of chain and indie restaurants/coffee shops. The indie spots are closer to my son's nursery and it makes sense after a hospital appointment to stop by for a coffee and a pastry and wait an hour while I work until 4.30 to get my son and then go home than go home and then come back but there is either a lack of facilities or disdain for anyone with an open laptop.

Other parents have mentioned this to with one particular indie coffee bar next to the nursery (looking for a place to catch a morning meeting timed closely to drop off). The chains are more welcoming and go out of their way to welcome wfh workers. So maybe if businesses want to survive they should adapt instead of wishing for a system that locked disabled people out of the workforce.

The high street has been on the wane for years, lockdowns just sped it up. We have always tried to support local business as we loved our local high street. But with inflation as it is at the moment it is hard to justify the extra cost over online so we do spend much less in town.

it should not be a shock to anyone that those who’s income is based on people having money for non-essential things will struggle when people have considerably less money to spend on non-essential things.

For certain businesses yes, for others such as local butchers or green grocers/deli who offer good products that are more often than not more expensive than even top end supermarkets have thrived and in a lot of cases even expanded.

Those supplying the non essentials to the little boutiques have decided to sell direct to the customer online as it means more money without a middle man, a lot of this is a generational/technology shift.

It is just an evolution of the high street, the overall market isn't down it is that trends have shifted, the lack of available employees is also a cultural shift and is not just down to a certain political narrative, it is happening across the globe.

You have had a huge amount of feedback on this thread @ChampagnePuppy - this is gold dust. The customers are not the enemy that you are making them out to be.
It’s your choice whether your take it on and adapt.

This! The prices of things have gone bananas. Last week I spotted a loaf of "artisan" bread for £10 at my local bakery. A single "artisan" scotch egg was £6 at the market. I don't live in London or the South East either.

Commuting yes but childcare??? Absolutely not my childcare bill has gone up along with everything else. Most people don't have their children at home whilst working we would all get sacked for starters!

And you stated earlier saving on utilities seriously is your head in the sand??? I work under a heated blanket to try and keep costs down. Our office cut the number of desks by half so it's not possible to be in more then your allocated days.

I'm sorry that your business is struggling but it's a cost of living thing not due to WFH people who many are sat in hats in winter to save energy bills as they are insane!

I get what you're saying, and why you're saying it OP. But this all reads like "I wish the British people weren't British". You DO live in a capitalist society, a society which voted for Brexit and over a decade of Tory rule after a Labour rule which was economically socialist, and socially capitalist. You're talking about a lack of community, of social breakdown, all worsened by hard economic times.

Then again, there's much to be said for the British, which you wouldn't be able to say about Gio and his kith and kin in Milan.