With inflation rates continuing to affect small businesses, one Powell River business has had to make difficult decisions to survive.
Coastal Cookery, a restaurant located at Marine Avenue, had taken a six to ten percent hit with food prices because of inflation. Owner and operator for Point Group Hospitality Sarah McClean says they’ve had to engineer items on the menu so they can survive.
“What has made this season in the restaurant more difficult to weather is that the inflation is in wages, as well as every single line in our PNL,” said McClean.
“And a lot of those inflationary pushes are coming from fuel surcharges that other businesses are putting on or need to put on their products, and it continues to streamline down to us.”
With Canada’s inflation now at 5.6 percent, McClean says they have had to make difficult decisions.
“We’ve taken off favorite items off our menu because they were no longer sustainable, not at a price point where we felt comfortable showing the guest, and we’ve had to say no for raises,” said McClean.
“Specifically on the tip earners, it puts a lot of pressure on trying to provide equity raises, and provincially that’s been the hugest pressure. While we’re trying to weather the storm with food and fuel prices coming down, we also were forced to take on the hit of the minimum wage increase in June.”
In terms of solutions, she adds there could be some support for those that operate businesses in rural communities, with hopes they’ll still be looked at like a social enterprise and be given some of the support systems social enterprises would get.
“I think we just have to continue to understand and recognize that this is the environment that we’re in, and that we’re in this together.”
