Surging Energy Costs: Illuminating Solutions
Despite price reductions in 2023, businesses are still recovering from the increased costs of keeping the lights on and the oven running. To address this, why not seek government assistance and implement energy efficiency measures?
Government Assistance: Join in on the calls for a new hospitality support package. Many local business owners are calling for new proposals including a VAT cut, a tailored energy price cap, an energy furlough scheme, and suspending business rates.
Energy Efficiency Measures: Follow advice from the Federation for Small Businesses (FSB) and get yourself an energy management plan in place. It could include things like temperature adjustments, buying energy-efficient lightbulbs or investing in some better insultation.
Escalating Food Prices
At its peak, rising inflation led to a 9.2% increase in food and drink – and many of our most loved products are still adding pennies onto their prices. Despite inflation easing, food prices remain high, driven by increased costs and geopolitical tensions. Here’s how to tackle the issue head-on:
Honesty is the Best Policy: Maintain trust by transparently acknowledging price increases on customer platforms.
Cost Savvy: Identify low-cost, high-profit menu options and manage waste to potentially reduce portion sizes.
Strategic Marketing: Leverage social media to build a community connection. Share team stories and everyday happenings to make your establishment a must-visit, despite the increased prices.
Workforce Shortages
Staffing
Where are all the workers? Challenges persist with recruitment across all of hospitality, with job vacancies reaching 121,000 in July-September 2023. Departures of overseas staff and shifting priorities of local workers contribute to this crisis. Here’s what you could do to help:
Set up some recruitment Initiatives: Collaborate with colleges, universities, and job centres for recruitment. Advocate for using apprenticeship funding for hospitality roles.
Employee Incentives: Beyond pay raises, consider flexible hours, improved schedules, staff well-being platforms, and increased pension contributions to retain and attract employees.
