Cost of living....struggles....rubbish!

[IwishIcouldconfess]

Been into Manchester today.

I'll be honest, shops full, restaurants full, pub's standing room only.

I thought as a country we were in a cost of living crisis, not in Manchester, the amount of cocktails, bottles of wine i saw being knocked back today made me wonder, ate things really as bad as as the narrative we're being sold?

Some people still have money op.

The Bank of England said borrowing was well down that people were rattled by two tough budgets and had cut back their credit delayed buying new furniture, sofas, houses. Spent less at Christmas, cheaper foods. Primark had a profit warning recently. They've turned their heating down, made other savings.

People are more aware of the cost of living these days. Maybe they've more disposable income because they've chipped away at their outgoings and can have a splurge.

The more I think about it, the more I reckon the combination of January deals and post pay day probably did heavy lifting in some places. Obviously lots of people will have been out in places not doing offers. But what I mean is, the people who just came to meet friends and could afford to come any weekend might normally prefer Venue A, but on Saturday it was rammed cos extra people were in for the last day of the January sale. So the usual crowd you get on any weekend get displaced to Venues B and C instead, who don't have deals on but have ended up busier than usual anyway because other businesses do.

There's a full weekend of January after payday next year too, so I suspect we'll see the same then.

And you're doing... what?

😂

You do know that some people earn decent money / manage their finances well / don't have mortgages etc so they can afford to go for a meal or a few drinks without putting it on a credit card?!

In my area the January deals were disappointingly absent this year.

This!!!

Can you imagine?! 😆

I nipped to our local Co-Op last night just to buy a packet of cream crackers. I hope nobody looked at me and thought that's all I could afford or that I'm living in poverty. Jesus Christ!

And that's for sure!

To be fair to OP, the way some talk you would think that everyone was skint, which just isn't true at all.

DH and I went to an Italian restaurant last Monday, in a very affluent Cheshire town just outside Manchester.
We were the only people in there.

My late FIL dabbled in shares. He said food and drink always did well when people were feeling the pinch or there was a war on.

This is the the thing, Manchester and Cheshire have quite a concentration of people who either genuinely have a lot of money or have lower incomes but also low living costs. There's still a lot of areas within striking distance of both where you can buy a family home with change from 150k. I could only find data on average mortgage payments for FTBs in the region, not mortgage holders per se, but ours is only a few hundred a month and that wouldn't be at all unusual for people over about 35.

Big cities attract people from a wide area. Have you tried visiting some small and medium towns around your area (not ones where tourist go). You'll find high streets half empty and people struggling.

Spent £70+ on dinner on Friday. And will be going out for drinks tonight and dinner on Thursday again. I'm doing alright. London is great.

Well yes. We have empty units, including a super large House of Fraser which is literally falling down. However the coffee shops are rammed, and we have dozens. The restaurants are abundant and full, requiring pre-booking, you can't just turn up for lunch nor dinner.

I think people are spending money on different things. DD works in a book shop, which is busy, but clothes stores are not doing well.

To a pp who bemoans that young people can't buy homes without parental help.... All the young people I know have managed. Yes, they lived at home for a while, saved, and got help from Mum and Dad, but so did I 40 years ago! I think more parents are divesting themselves of deposits earlier these days, and why not?? Rather that than iht being paid.

To a pp who bemoans that young people can't buy homes without parental help.... All the young people I know have managed

Yes, they lived at home for a while, saved, and got help from Mum and Dad,

🤔😆

The ones who can live at home until they've saved up a deposit and can get a mortgage aren't the ones we need to be worrying about...

Out spending, living and loving my life, enjoying myself.

Which appears lots of others are doing too.

I am going out again tomorrow into Manchester - lets see how busy it is then

Gutted!

So you're able to do this, and are confused that others are too?

Another wind up post then.

Tbf it'll probably be a fair bit quieter on a Tuesday. Unless OP is planning to go to any student nights.

Hrft but i walked through the local high street yesterday, 80% shops closed and the rest either betting shops or vapes.

Very sad but not necessarily related to COL. Though I do think perhaps people that shopped locally, maybe we're in lower income brackets who may have been struggling more in comparison to regular earners who perhaps shop high street less.

We do have a decent retail park area which seems to be ok, but of course you can park there easily, less do on the high street.

Does my head in though that you can only shop in the retail area you parked in, if you want the other shops, (second retail park) you can't walk you have to drive or get fined. Does my head in.
If I ruled the world you would have to provide linked parking for any retail units in 500m area with reciprocal arrangements.

Post payday weekend is always busier. Also, people celebrating the end of dry January?

Many people are still going out (it's dull, dreary and depressing stopping in all the time). But spending behaviour has changed.

Seeing the impact of COL is in the details. So people meeting and going out for lunch instead of dinner. Having coffee and cake instead of drinks. Choosing to have daytime drinks (when there are often offers on the cocktails like 2 for 1 or 3 for 2/ happy hours rather than evening. Wetherspoons for drinks instead of more expensive bars. The cheaper venues are more affordable so are busy.

Same with days out to attractions. The cheap/ free attractions are rammed. Things that offer annual passes or year tickets are busier (often with repeat visitors where they can use the pass). Anything that is running a promotional offer is busy (blue light card, visit on these dates for only £x, discount code offers, kids/adults go free ect. When you look carefully you notice, lots of packups come out at lunchtime, lots of refillable drinks bottles, lots of insulated flasks. People buying only coffees/ hot chocolates but no food. Where people are buying food it's chip butties/ hotdogs/ burgers (the cheap items on the menu).