To think *some* independent shops really aren't helping themselves...?

[BeansAndNoodles]

I'm massively supportive of small businesses, I try to use them as often as I can. We are lucky to have a high street with lots of independent shops. However, my trips to town are limited due to being short of spare time, plus parking costs a fortune unless you limit it to the free 90 mins that you get in the supermarket car park, etc.

But time and time again I go to one of the independent shops to find them randomly shut. I get that they probably only have one staff member so it's hard to stay open if anything out of the ordinary happens, but it's still so flipping frustrating.

The last few trips to town have ended with me ordering stuff online or going into one of the chains because the independent shops I wanted were closed for no apparent reason. The independent health food shop is the worst, they close for an hour at some point between 11 and 3 for lunch but it's not the same time day to day and they don't say on the closed sign what time they'll be back, so if you get there and it's shut you don't know if it's worth trekking back to that end of town in 30 mins or not. I tend not to even bother checking now and just go straight Holland & Barrat instead. Several more shops seem to rely on posting that days opening hours on their FB page, but thats hardly a reliable way to tell people if they're open or not! Last week I had an afternoon off and took a trip to a different town specifically to go to a shop that stocks work by local artists to get some cards and gifts, only to find it closed with no indication of why or if it was opening late or what. I checked their FB page while stood outside but nope nothing. Later that day (3 hours after their stated opening time) they posted that they'd decided to open later for the Christmas lights switch on and that they hoped people would come and support them

Anyway I've just seen yet another slightly passive aggressive plea from one of the owners of the worst shops for this, complaining how quiet business is and telling people to use them or lose them yada. Well yes I totally agree but more often then not when I try to use them they're not bloody open!

There's a local cafe in area that does this - also had it in nearby city center.

I think it becuase they just pay staff opening hours - so they have to do cleaning when still open - but why close at 4 not 5 or 5.30 pm no idea.

im a Bath resident too - yep this was a weird one, they lost the shop because they couldn’t pay the rent - the problem was they did a mish mash and as others have said here erratic hours- the plant side of things was nicely done- lovely window, but they did neither the cafe side or record side of if it well ( and we work in music) just had rather an unwelcoming feel and yep it was in a bit of a nomans land - why not use the publicity they got to say ‘come and have a look , £1 off any coffee or record or plant etc’ !!

I find some of the online independents just as bad tbh.

It's so frustrating to feel guilty tripped that we are the bad guys for not shopping independently and ruining the world ... But then they treat their actual customers like dirt.

I ordered 2 Christmas jumpers from an independent in October!! They still aren't here (5th Dec) and if you email to query you get a passive aggressive auto reply whining that they are a one woman band and doing the best they can. Yet they have plenty of time to post on social media and have "reopened orders" twice because they apparently have capacity 🙄

I find some of the online independents just as bad tbh.

It's so frustrating to feel guilty tripped that we are the bad guys for not shopping independently and ruining the world ... But then they treat their actual customers like dirt.

I ordered 2 Christmas jumpers from an independent in October!! They still aren't here (5th Dec) and if you email to query you get a passive aggressive auto reply whining that they are a one woman band and doing the best they can. Yet they have plenty of time to post on social media and have "reopened orders" twice because they apparently have capacity 🙄

I find some of the online independents just as bad tbh.

It's so frustrating to feel guilty tripped that we are the bad guys for not shopping independently and ruining the world ... But then they treat their actual customers like dirt.

I ordered 2 Christmas jumpers from an independent in October!! They still aren't here (5th Dec) and if you email to query you get a passive aggressive auto reply whining that they are a one woman band and doing the best they can. Yet they have plenty of time to post on social media and have "reopened orders" twice because they apparently have capacity 🙄

Can you do a chargeback with your bank and buy them elsewhere? You won't get chance to wear them if she takes much longer.

Not quite the same but many takeaways where I live are closed Monday through Thursday and its frustrating.

There had been many a Monday or hump day where we have just been drained or had a cold and felt like shit or been overwhelmed and thought 'lets just order takeaway' only to find most place are closed.

There was one place open here every day of the week and they have had so much business from us, they know us by name, I genuinely think if we went missing they would be the people to notice and file a report. Its not just us they have a die hard clientele of loyal customers but honestly the very base of why they get so much business is because they are the only bloody ones open.

There are two other local takeaway we do like but they are only open half the week and often shut randomly for 'emergencies' so even on days they are suppose to be open its not surprising to find them closed.

Surely they lose so much business, its not like they magically aren't paying rent and other costs on the days they are closed etc...

The movement towards communication & information being via Instagram means they are likely missing out on customers.

I can no longer contact my son's independent gym by phone or email.

I was interested in joining some classes at a local small gym - no phone, no email, just Insta and TikTok where I couldn't find the info I needed.

I understand it's the way things are moving, but I likely have more disposable income than the young 20 somethings they want to attract.

I ordered 2 Christmas jumpers from an independent in October!! They still aren't here (5th Dec) and if you email to query you get a passive aggressive auto reply whining that they are a one woman band and doing the best they can. Yet they have plenty of time to post on social media and have "reopened orders" twice because they apparently have capacity

Eff that, I'd be demanding a refund. Two months to get a jumper and it hasnt even been dispatched? Thats ridiculous.

I could understand it if you were asking for a hand carved life sized elephant made out of a single block of marble but a jumper? Nah.

That's a bit sweeping. I've visited my local butcher and greengrocer today. Both family businesses and I doubt very much that they're fronts for that kind of thing.

I was just going to say about my favourite cafe here in Bath - run by a jolly and smart Italian guy in a pretty location - he’s not the cheapest but does a few things nowhere else does, quality is high and if he’s not run off his feet I’ve had some great chats, everything from Brexit to holiday destinations- does an absolute ton of gluten free stuff too and a fab coffee. He keeps his staff as well and is open when they say - I’ve been in for a coffee 5 minutes before they shut and never been rushed or made to feel unwelcome. Consequently it is much loved by locals!

Not an independent but seems a good a thread to moan on as any.
Asked for a coffee after our dinner at Wagamma's.
"Sorry, we've just cleaned the machine".

It was 8.30pm! Granted it was mid week in a large town (not city) but still.......

Hard agree.

We have a nice independent cafe/coffee shop near to us, that we tried really hard to support when it first opened. But we went so many times only to find that it was randomly closed, that we stopped trying and now go to our local Costa instead.

It’s only open 10am-2pm for a start. Closed on Sundays and Mondays. But then they post online loads - “sorry due to all the rain today we’ve decided to close for the day” “sorry due to the heatwave we’ve decided to close today” ……. but more often than not, there is no post to say it’s closed randomly for the day…….. you walk 10 minutes to get there planning to have lunch and it’s just closed!

I have no idea how they make a profit.

A cafe opened near me. It's advertised opening hours were 10-3 6 days a week and closed on Sunday. They regularly opened late or closed early often on Facebook they would post they'd decided not to open for various reasons, all of which were arguably non essential.

This week they posted a VERY long post on Facebook saying they often saw the Costa nearby packed while they were struggling and the community were not supporting them etc. Well, yes, the Costa is open for people going to work, the school run, after the school run, lunch and into the evening 7 days a week and are open from their exact opening times to their exact closing times every day they say they're going to be, so people go there.

@Hollietree cross posted with you there but our posts are very similar! Who knew more than one person would choose to run their business like that 😂

Yes definitely I took DD into a cafe one day after she had a seizure. She needed to have a sit down and a drink. So we went to a local independent cafe it was just after 2 so not late afternoon. Ordered drinks DD wanted a cake so I asked if we could have one. Woman didn’t look happy then said you know we’re closing soon she looked genuinely pissed off. I would have walked out but didn’t want to upset DD and trigger her to have another seizure. But we got the cake and drinks anyway. I looked up online what time they closed and it said 3pm so another 50 minutes open for another 50 minutes or so. I haven’t been back in there since.

There was one independent gift shop near me which I used to visit regularly... until you were greeted with a little shrine to Saint Boris, standing at his podium, telling people to wear masks. The shop also had too many "Smile! You are on camera" signs for my liking. Yes, shoplifting is a widespread problem, but thieves are not going to be deterred by a smiling emoji, are they?

Sorry I probably wasn’t clear- I opened the cafe but I didn’t just work 2 hours, I worked until maybe 11. I was alone until 8am I think- long time ago so a bit hazy.
Having said that, a couple of years ago when I needed extra cash I would have jumped at a job I could do for two hours before work!
Yes, of course, the profit needs to cover paying someone. Childminders are cheaper probably.
Successful business owners aren’t idiots but in my experience the ones opening their cafes at 10 am and closing at 2.30 are not ultimately successful. Solutions can often be found .

Ive had exactly the same thought lately!

Recently i wanted:

• a jeweller
• a carpet shop

I work mon- fri so needed one i could go to on a saturday afternoon - a very standard time to shop.

Both local jewellers and 3 carpet shops were all completely closed on the weekend. One shop basically only opened 9 -3 weekdays in term time and clearly came second to the proprietors school run.

I am not sure who they expect to patronise them? Retirees and the unemployed? Ive got a big budget for the carpets and was forced to go to a big online retailer.

It feels like a lot of business owners now are hobby entrepreneurs who've chosen self employment not because they are focussed on what makes business sense, but because they want to make money around personal commitments.

It is only when I retired that I got to see how many people are around during the working day.

There are loads and of all ages. I don’t understand it.

I have local cafes with limited openings hours that seem to be doing just fine.

I think limited opening hours would be fine if they were actually open during those hours, opening late and closing randomly for whole days or early isn't a good business strategy though!

Absolutely. I can be very flexible with things in my life. One older teenager at home, WFH full time but very flexible. I'm quite able to work with varying, unusual and limited opening hours IF I KNOW WHEN THEY ARE.

Totally agree. Anyone expecting to run a successful retail outlet must a) be open standard trading hours and b) stock a good range of whatever speciality they supply

This does my head in. Don’t they realise people plan their shop,
and often to coincide with other shopping or arrangements? We don’t all live round the corner. There is one shop I used to go to which closed at 5pm but if you got there at 4.30 they would be shut. Don’t even talk to me about cafes that close at 3pm.

That’s turning their problem into the customer’s problem. Why deliberately put a barrier to business in place?

The customer doesn’t really care that the business owner needs a break. They’re not their friend; they’re not worried poor Mr Shopkeeper might be suffering from burnout. They just want to buy their item.

Why make the customer call to check you’re open when you could build a consistent daily break into your opening hours and stick to it? Maybe take your lunch from 2 - 3, so that you’re open when potential customers are taking their lunch break?

No, because I’m not their business coach. They’re trying to get my money, I don’t really care whether they do or not so long as I get what I want.

We shouldn’t be propping up substandard businesses, if they can’t figure this out for themselves then running a business probably isn’t for them.