{$inpagemarkup}

Search News

Results: 1-10 of 652


Budget leaves retail sector disappointed with support offered by the Chancellor

16 Mar 2023

Industry experts and trade associations in the retail sector have been expressing their disappointment at the support offered to retailers in the Chancellor’s Budget.
Read more…

UK home entertainment market enjoys its tenth consecutive year of growth.

15 Mar 2023

The UK home entertainment market enjoyed its tenth consecutive year of growth in 2022 to reach a record, according to figures published by the Entertainment Retailers Association.
Read more…

Retailers face up to £1m fines for underage knife sales under new sentencing guidelines

14 Mar 2023

Retailers caught selling knives to children in England and Wales could face a £1m fine when new sentencing guidelines come into effect on 1 April.
Read more…

80% of British public want card payment fees slashed as the cost-of-living crisis hits businesses

14 Mar 2023

New data shows that a majority of the UK public oppose the rising and unregulated costs British businesses face for simply accepting payments. With the cost of doing business at record levels,... Read more…

How independents can become more sustainable

13 Mar 2023

From saving energy and lighting costs, to using biodegradable packaging and prolonging a product’s lifespan, Drapers Magazine has been looking at how independent retailers can improve... Read more…

Over 160,000 SMEs without mandatory employers’ liability insurance risk fines and prosecution

3 Mar 2023

More than 160,000 small businesses in the UK with between one and nine employees will not have employer’s liability insurance by the end of the year, according to new research from Smart... Read more…

Bakers showing resilience despite cost pressures

3 Mar 2023

Britain’s bakers are showing great resilience despite continued cost and operational pressures, according to industry groups.
Read more…

New research shows local high streets & shopping centres more resilient than major shopping hubs in cost-of-living crisis

3 Mar 2023

New data from commercial property specialist Colliers shows that in the face of the UK’s cost of living crisis, minor retail destinations such as local high streets and shopping centres... Read more…

Value of contactless payments grew 50% last year.

27 Feb 2023

Barclays, which oversees nearly half of the UK’s card spending, has reported that the total value of contactless payments made using Barclays cards in the UK increased by 49.7% year on... Read more…

UK bike sales hit 20-year low but long-term outlook remains positive

22 Feb 2023

The Annual Market Data Report for 2022 from The Bicycle Association (BA) reports annual cycle sales in the UK fell to 1.88 million units in 2022, a 20-year low, 27% below pre-COVID levels in... Read more…

Back to news menu

Bakers showing resilience despite cost pressures

Posted on in Business News

bakeryBritain’s bakers are showing great resilience despite continued cost and operational pressures, according to industry groups.

While some bakeries have been forced to shut down in the face of soaring input costs, trade bodies say the number that have ceased trading has not been higher than usual.

“Fortunately, we currently only have a limited number of members reporting closures across both small operators and those with multiple shops and wholesale customers,” explained Karen Dear, director of operations at the Craft Bakers Association.

Her views were echoed by Scottish Bakers, which said it had not seen a spike in bakery closures and that its membership remained stable.

“The energy relief scheme in place over the Christmas period and running to the end of March provided a much-needed cushion for our members facing massive rises in their gas and electricity bills,” said Scottish Bakers CEO Alasdair Smith.

But the industry remains concerned about the immediate future and particularly about the replacement of the current energy relief scheme with the energy bills discount scheme in April.

“There is little clarity on how the most recent energy support scheme will be implemented and until the scheme has been in place for at least a month, we will be unsure of how this will impact business’ energy bills,” said Dear.

Scottish Bakers has estimated that the new scheme will cause gas prices for its members to rise by a minimum of 32% and electricity by a minimum of 12%. It fears that, together with continued commodity prices increases, some businesses will be pushed to consider closure.

Pointing to the closures that have already been seen, Real Bread Campaign coordinator Chris Young added: “With popular bakeries unable to make it when the energy bill relief scheme was in place, we’re really worried what’s going to happen after the first of April.”

“Costs of energy, ingredients and more on one side of the counter are forcing bakers to raise prices, at exactly the same time that costs of everything on the other side mean customers are reducing how much they spend and how often.”

The CBA added that it is also concerned about bakers in contracts with energy companies at a higher rate than they previously had.

“As their contracts ran out during the height of the crisis, they are still now tied into these contracts,” said Dear. “We want the government to look at this and work with the energy companies and small businesses to either get the current cost they are paying back in line with the cost now or allow the business to break contract and re-negotiate.”

Back to news menu

Useful links

If you have any other queries please contact us.