North Street in Bedminster is vibrant, picturesque and championed by a roster of independent businesses ranging from delis and cafes to plant shops and the Tobacco Factory.
But to what extent has the ongoing economic situation and cost of living impacted traders at North Street?
We talked to 11 traders to see how business is going and the impacts the cost of living crisis and high energy bills have had. Here’s what we found:
1. North Street Cheese Company
Kim and Adele said: “We're using quite a lot of energy to keep the cheese all at a certain temperature so as a business goes, it has high overheads. The cost of the bills going up is not easy for a small independent business. It’s a very quiet part of the street compared to the top end of North Street. Weekends are generally busier. People have got money to spend I think because people are staying in more rather than going out drinking and going for meals. They’re spending a little bit of money on something like a nice cheese board to stay in so that’s been quite positive. It’s artisan cheese - people could go and get cheaper cheese in the supermarket but customers like the product and they like the fact that we’ve got so much variety and it’s really good quality. We’ve got lots of regulars that come in and just buy a loaf of bread or come in and have a little chat. It’s really nice.”
2. Southville Deli
Giedre, the manager who has been working at Southville Deli for ten years, said: “I think the footfall is not as it used to be. I think the main thing is people looking at what they’re buying and if it’s more expensive they think twice if they need that product. So we’re trying to look at the range of the products so they would be not too expensive and be in the middle. And if there is a need for someone who wants something but we don’t have it in the shop, we can order for them.”
3. Zara's Chocolate
At Zara’s Chocolate, Leila said that the shop has been open for ten years so it is quite established and because they are on a high street, they are fairly busy. However, they noticed that people are spending less.
4. Toyville
Joel, the owner of Toyville Games, said: “In terms of the cost of living crisis, there has definitely been a change in patterns, especially around Christmas time. People start their Christmas shopping much later, leaving it till the last couple of weeks, which makes it hard to run a business because I can’t get any stock in in the last few weeks before Christmas so I end up running out of stuff. Footfall does seem to be down a lot but people who do spend are still spending decent amounts of money so it’s not too bad. This shop has only been here two years, so it’s hard to really compare it to previous years. I also run the toy shop down the road. Patterns have really changed, but then it’s really hard to spot patterns when you’ve had a pandemic a few years ago, really impacting everything."