That some small businesses are failing because they don’t adapt to the needs of their customers?

[Isawyou]

I try to shop local. Fortunately I do have some great independent places nearby.

What I am finding frustrating is for example the fruit and veg shop closes at 4.30pm. They start packing up at 3.45pm and it is really difficult to buy things from there where they are stacking all the stands with the produce inside. They also look unhappy at customers coming to buy at packing up time. It is easier to go to the Tesco express that stays open until midnight.

Other shops do not open until 10am and close early. So I can’t get there before work or after work.

They complain their businesses are not doing well and people do not shop local but they are not exactly facilitating it for the customers either.

They have to pay costs so would need to make up those costs for it to make it worth their while to open differently or even just want to have a life themselves? They can't exactly work from home and have flexibility life some employees can have

I can't imagine them thinking 'wow we will be better off if we stay open longer never thought of that'

I doubt the fruit and veg shop will close down, they are always very busy. Have they actually told you they aren't doing well, OP? What time do they open up? I expect they have to be down at the wholesaler at the crack of dawn to collect all the produce so open earlier. By 4.30pm they're probably done for the day. Personally I value those local businesses, because I like my fruit and veg loose rather than packed in all that single use plastic that the supermarkets need to get rid of.

Most fruit and veg places I know are up in London at midnight getting produce from the markets. Then drive a couple of hours back, sleep 2 hrs, unload everything ready to sell. No wonder they close at 4pm

Exactly that @Caspianberg and there isn't a big margin in fruit and veg either! Personally I'd give my business to them any day over the bloody supermarkets. Loose produce is fab and none of that shrinkflation- you know what you're getting and it's always lovely and fresh.

As a manager in a small local independent (clothing store in my case) - regardless of what you do, there’s always going to be someone unhappy with it 😬😅

We open Mon-Sat 10-5 in winter, 9-5.30 in summer and Sunday 12-4 in winter and 11-5 in summer.
Every week I’ll have someone moan at me because we open too late (we don’t, we usually serve our first customer around 11am!) or about how ridiculous it is that we don’t do late night shopping (it’s not ridiculous - we rarely see a customer during the last 30-45 mins of trading). For us to open the shop earlier and stay open later just on the off chance that one of these people decided to shop would just not make financial sense to the business at all!
As it goes, the ones we get moaning about the times are usually the same ones to ask for a discount every time they come into the shop too.

I run a deli and after 1.30pm its tumbleweed, maybe 2 customers until we close at 4pm. We tried opening until 6.30, still dead. We are now considering opening 7 x 3 everyday as it works better for baking. If anyone has any suggestions how to improve afternoon/evening footfall im all ears.

that absolutely can be true, but I'm talking specific cases where I know they would have gotten a crowd, and there was demand, and they didn't want to. And I agree that the footfall rarely justifies regular late opening, but many successful craft shops have one late evening, especially in larger towns or cities. That's just one example. And what's more, the owners who run their stores this way wind up having to close. I've personally seen shops close because the owner ran it like a hobby instead of a business. Running your business as a hobby isn't just about things like unfriendly hours; it's about how you treat your customers. I've been a knitter for over 20 years and have been to a lot of shops. It really is a niche that's known for dreamy hobbyists.

(opposite case: My friend's grandmother ran a craft-related shop for decades. She began closing early as she got older (she didn't retire until well into her 80s), and till the day she closed, her shop was cash-only. Newcomers might be baffled, but longtime customers didn't mind.)

I don't get all this "shop local" stuff. I am not a charity, I am not going to pay more or get worse service just so some local person can make a profit. No one in my town is concerned about my livelihood so why am I meant to pretend I care about their's? Seems so weird to me. If they want my custom they need to run a better business. Simple as that really.

Because govt chooses to fund us for those hours. Most areas have a GP hub for weekend appts. Would you work for free all weekend?

I think this is totally fair. The only thing is (what I've noticed) as once the bigger shops get hold, then it all drops in service. I went shopping the other day, all automated, the machine didn't work, no human to be found. Even the stock was sub par, can only assume as they are trying to encourage more to shop online because it's more profitable for team. The last two years I have noticed a dramatic drop in everything, including quality. Once they have the monopoly then they've got you

if You care about shopping locally why not go in on one of your days off? It’s really not necessary for everywhere to be open 24/7 to accommodate every whim of the customer. Are people working in shops expected to work 12 hour shifts 7 days a week to accommodate the occasional purchase? Yes it’s convenient but the reality is that most places are dead outside of core hours. If you’re in town it’s no great hardship to take some cash out the machine either!

Then you are lucky to to fit & well and have transport to get you to an out-of-town supermarket.

In rural market towns there are people (often older) who aren't so fortunate and need local shops.

My DH has a business. He works Monday to Friday usually from 8-6, Saturdays from 9-1.30 and will often work on a Sunday too to suit his customers needs. He last took a holiday in October 2019. It is just him, the business does not make enough money to employ anyone else and employment law puts him off employing staff anyway.

As a small business owner he is also his own administrator, bookkeeper, credit controller etc

I agree with some of the other comments on this post and would also be irritated by 'cash only' businesses but it's not always as simple as it seems.

For what it's worth I've never understood GPs only opening Monday to Friday imagine the reaction of the public if Tesco decided to do that?

People's thoughts are often if you own a business you must be making a fortune. In some cases that is true but fr from all. The reality is that just like everyone else we are hit by the cost of living and can't always pass these increases on.

I live in a smal town with a fantastic high street full of independent shops and cafes, a cinema, restaurants etc. We love it and it's one of the reasons we moved here.
Yesterday we shopped at a hardware shop, a greengrocers and a butchers, went to the cinema and had coffee. All at small independent businesses.

But, unlike some of the places described above, they are all open at reasonable times, the owners and staff are friendly and chatty, and most take cash or card!!

Slightly different than a small independent shop, but I took over as manager of a dental surgery a couple of years ago, had always been 9-5 mon to Fri.
We now do 8-8 one day a week, and open Saturdays, and have child only sessions during half terms as not to disrupt school too much.
I look after the staff well, extra hours on a rota basis, the dentists are happy as the patients feel listened to, a whole lot less moaning from people about having to take time off work for appointments.
As a manager I feel like it's helping both the local needs and the business (although I hate referring to it as a business)

This I can understand, because as frustrating as it is, I can't imagine that so many people are buying wool to be frequenting it at all hours throughout the day.

Seems like being open at the weekend for shorter hours would be ideal though.

I run a small business, you do have to constantly adapt. We are finally exceeding out pre covid profit but it's been a long road. You have to have feedback with your customers all the time, whether that's about your hours, what you sell, how to make it easier.... Focus on your best customers and how to meet their needs better.

Shops are private business too

My GP has adjusted by providing a late night once a week they do this by one or two GPS starting later so same amount of appointments but spread over the day

The lack of consistency is what annoys me. Local shops being randomly closed at a time they're supposed to be open, taking week-long breaks with no forewarning, changing their opening times again with no warning. And they're the ones that are on social media going on about shopping locally!

Was just thinking this recently when I went to a local high street craft shop mid week and it was closed. A handwritten sign on the door said opening hours "Tuesday, Thursday, Friday 10am till 2pm, Saturday 10am till 1pm". I thought WTF, how on earth do they survive? Then went home and ordered from a large online craft store.

“f you buy lamb chops from your local butcher you'll know the animal will have been slaughtered that day and will be fresh”

@Captiancorrellistuba i personally wouldn’t want to be eating meat killer the same day as it’s pretty inedible. Mea Thad to hang to get rid of toxins, rigor morris etc. so they don’t run off down the abattoir to get fresh meat to sell that day. But get your point

It's complicated, inconsistent opening hours that put me off. Things like 10am-3.30pm on Mondays, 9.30am - 2pm on Tuesdays, 9-1pm on Wednesday etc. Plus randomly being closed at an advertised opening time. Once they go down that route it is usually the beginning of the end.

This.

It's always baffled me that local business owners wang on about supermarkets/chains killing their businesses. That's capitalism, unfortunately, and they chose to enter the fray. They can't then complain because the competition is too great. Either improve your offer or don't moan that others are getting more custom.

Being 'local' doesn't make your business better or more worthy of patronage.

I agree.

For me, 'shop local' is always about getting local produce - fresh, locally grown vegetables, meat from the village farms etc - so I am always happy to pay more and make an effort to suit their opening hours because I consider what I am getting in return absolutely worth it.

'Shop local' doesn't work if it just means paying more for the same things you can get considerably cheaper elsewhere and with less inconvenience, just because it's owned by someone who lives near you. That's not a viable business model; you have to be offering people something more than a guilt trip.

I own a cafe and used to open at 730 but got 2 customers that early so moved back to 830 as it was pointless. There's always reasons, people don't pluck the opening times out their arses. Might be useful for one or two but it's also about keeping costs down