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?

You have some control over it.

Your current income is predicted (corrlated) to:

1. Your parents income
2. Your grandparents income
3. Who you married
4. Your education level

You can only really control (3) and (4).

Thing is though everybody's COL is different? So in simple terms. The bottles of prosecco you saw drank? Few years ago that was champagne.
The white stuff carrier bag used to be Selfridge's etc?
So you can't judge it so simply. Surely.

Good point. Some of the visible spending actually is people tightening their belts.

You can't control the severe events that you carefully skipped over, and you have very little influence over the education you receive.

If you lack social skills, or, like me, are very ugly and charmless, you may not have much choice in marriage, either. Especially if you started out as a low earner

The people most hurt by the COL crisis are those that were already near the breadline. They simply could not afford cost inflation of 10% on top of rising interest rates that made their debt more expensive or caused an increase in their rental costs. So they ended up in food banks etc.

These people were probably not the ones out in coffee shops, bars, restaurants or M&S Christmas food aisle even before the COL crisis.

The majority of people have felt the rise in costs but have been able to absorb it by saving less, going on less luxurious holidays, put off the new car purchase etc without the needing to drastically reduce their day to day standard of living. This has been helped further by inflation dropping to a little over 2% and interest rates coming down.

I didn't skip over them. I just didn't mention them because by definition they are unpredictable low frequency, high severity events that could potentially happen to you. Who you choose to marry, or if you choose to study further education are personal choices that are within your control. Getting hit by a car and becoming paralysed is not.

You can make your own success? I grew up poor so did H.

So did I. I was also lucky enough to not have any chronic illnesses or life changing injuries, and that my parents valued education despite being poor etc. I do however have the ‘setback’ of having a severely disabled child, which somewhat limited my earning potential.
Some things we can control, some we can’t.

Apparently we should be spending £400-£500 on a prom dress if our dd is “working hard”. I’m sure some people would have more spare funds if they made better choices! (This isn’t aimed at those genuinely struggling)

Social mobility in the UK has regressed a bit over the last 30Y. It is more difficult today to move from a lower income background (low-mid class) to a higher one (upper middle or above). This is mostly driven by the very high cost of housing.

I went out in Manchester today saw a show and had a meal and a glass of wine.
We're on benefits uc and pip and I work FT.
Show was an xmas present.
We ate at spoons.
Probably be months now before we go out again.

First pay of 2026 and a 4 week month ahead. We went out too even though we are fairly skint.

What a bizarre, sanctimonious comment. Have you never popped into the supermarket for a couple of bits and pieces?!
This reminds me of the time my dad popped into Tesco to get a couple of jars of baby food for my son. At the till he found he had forgotten his wallet, and a very well spoken lady behind him insisted on paying for the food, despite his strong objections that it wasn't necessary (he's a millionaire several times over). This was in Manchester. My dad was dirty and dressed in old clothes because he'd been gardening all day. You can't judge a book by it's cover!

Yes.

Loads of places have shut down - so fewer places for those who can afford it to go to.

@UndisputedChampion You and your husband have succeeded ,so good for you 👏but many people who had a hopeless childhood will not have had the motivation, aspirations to succeed.

I wonder if some of its because more younger people are having to live at home because they cant afford to move out but then have more of a disposable income because of this. My DD works, saves but has money to do nice things to and lives with us.

Just been up to London for the day. No empty seats a the Royal Opera House (first time for me, was amazing), struggled to book a table as everywhere was booked. Streets busy. Pubs chocker. Shops full. Train was standing room only there and back. And it wasn’t all tourists.

Am hoping its a sign that the upturn is just around the corner. We need some good news.

It was as busy in town today as a few weeks before Christmas. I was wondering why until it was pointed out on here it's payday. I very rarely go into town anymore ( first time since a few days before Christmas) but needed to pick up ds prescription. I thought it was reassuring to see people using the high street personally. So many big brands going bust. We bought stuff while out, but it was £6 of notebooks from the Works, three boys tops for £25 from Primark. Some tin Turkish bowls for £7. Can still get little treats once in a blue moon but at a low cost. Haven't bought ds clothes for ages.

Also agree that cost cutting might look like driving the same car for 11 years. So I can still drive with less disposable income. Can still go to the shops occasionally. Doesn't mean I'm spending what I did years ago. We rarely get takeaways, I no longer go to the hairdressers. Dd has had her haircut once in her life. We go on holidays. Its a choice. It's not takeaway coffee daily and holidays and nice car. It's what's important to US and bin the rest off. In turn it's less income for the eat out places, the hairdresser etc so it does bite someone even if we outwardly look like we are living the same life. Until my car dies anyway. Garage is greatful I guess as it slowly dies a death. Ds wanted some trainers. I said to dh we will wait until they fall apart or are outgrown. Ten years ago I'd be buying them regularly to make sure they didn't get really tight. Now I will wait until they are unusable.

It is highly likely this is all she needed. Thank god you did not say anything to her, she would have most likely felt rather insulted. A lot of people pop it to the shops for a couple of items, does not mean they have no money and they need a charity handout.

I know, I went for a bunch of bananas, some Greek yoghurt and some pork chops earlier. I’m not poor, it’s just all I needed!

I go into Manchester quite a lot. I have plenty of disposable income and lots of people are in a similar position.

In my experience, the more expensive bars and restaurants are broadly as busy now as ever. The middling places aren't as busy, and when they are the average spend is lower. You can see that in the amount of places closing recently, especially the chain places.

Well it's a day out for many who don't live in Manchester. We're in Wales days out to Manchester and Liverpool are a thing.

Maybe people should make it easier for you. How about if they can't afford to eat.drink out they go into Manchester & sit outside the venues, with their hungry, crying children?

We are lucky to have two decent incomes in our house, but in our city (NE Scotland) there have been a raft of hospitality closures this month - independent small places, chains, it’s really sad.

We were out for a fancy lunch today but actually it was with a very generous gift voucher I had been given for Christmas. For a six course tasting menu and drinks the bill after the voucher was £4. You can’t tell what people’s situation is at a glance!