The boss of an award-winning Nottingham Indian restaurant says it's 'inevitable' the price of a curry will go up as businesses battle rising costs. The cost of living crisis is taking its toll on the hospitality sector and community leaders representing restaurant owners have said soaring energy and ingredient prices have left the industry in a 'dark place'.
Shale Ahmed, who represents restaurant owners in Birmingham, also went on record to say weekly shopping bills have increased by by 40 percent. He added if customers were charged accordingly with the increased overheads faced by businesses a curry would cost between £25 to £30.
John Dhaliwal, the managing director of the Calcutta Club in Maid Marian Way, said it was 'inevitable' prices at restaurants would rise if operational costs don't begin to fall in the new year. He said: "It's inevitable at the end of the day as the cost of labour and utilities continues to grow or sustain itself at this level.
Read more: 'Senseless' vandals destroy popular Christmas tree by Nottingham charity
"At the end of the day, curry businesses like any others need to make a profit so if the margin is diminished then something needs to give way. The only control point that most business owners have is the price to the customer themselves. It's a catch-22 situation as a reduction in footfall may mean a price increase which could cause a drop in footfall so you are back at square one again."
And on the points made by Mr Ahmed, Mr Dhaliwal said: "At some point, across the board, the price of curry will need to increase. Someone made a comment at the recent curry awards that the average price of a curry will rise to £30. All I can say is watch this space, if it starts to creep up towards that figure then it's going to have a huge effect."
Mr Dhaliwal's business has just won the Best Restaurant at the British Curry Awards 2022. He said business was booming, especially after their recent win. But Mr Dhaliwal made clear the industry was experiencing 'an immense burden' owing to the financial increases.
"The price of utilities has gone up dramatically and the price of raw materials has gone up immensely. The price of poultry has literally doubled in the space of six months so we've seen huge changes in the price of materials and labour.
"This puts an immense burden on the businesses themselves as we are still not back to pre-pandemic figures," he said. For most businesses, if they are making a comparison in financial years, it will always be looking at 2019.
"We went into the pandemic in 2020 where you should be looking for growth under normal circumstances but most businesses would be happy to get back to the figures they left off in 2019 with and that will be the benchmark at this point."
Mr Dhaliwal said the Christmas period has meant a boost for business but that this could mean a drop in the new year as the January blues set in across the board.
"Going into Christmas, what we have is an almost false boost to the economy which should settle in January. That's when we will start to see the real effect of the price increases."
East Midlands Chamber chief executive Scott Knowles said: “Throughout the past year, businesses from a broad range of sectors have been telling us about being severely hampered by rising costs. These are coming from all angles – energy, raw materials, people and fuel – and giving firms little wiggle room as they feel the squeeze.
“It’s no surprise, then, that our research shows 67% of Nottinghamshire businesses believe they will be forced to raise their own prices over the coming year. While we know many of the headwinds causing the inflationary spiral we are in are global, there are things our Government can do to support businesses.
“In our newly-published Business Manifesto for Growth, we call on policymakers to ‘get the basics right’ by supporting organisations to invest in their people, creating a simpler business taxation and regulatory system, and improving physical and digital connectivity. This would create an environment that enables businesses to grow and drive our economy forward, generating jobs and prosperity locally.”
Why not sign up to one of our newsletters by clicking here to keep up with all the latest news from across Nottinghamshire.
Read more:
- Fans delighted as historic Nottingham music shop reopens
- We go to Wollaton Christmas lights and get lost in a winter wonderland labyrinth
- Police release image of man they want to trace after football match brawl in Nottingham city centre
- Ninth child dies with Strep A as minister says antibiotics could be given in schools
- The latest M1 news from Nottinghamshire Live
