Tash Kaiser has watched many businesses come and go on Lonsdale Street since she opened her store two years ago.
"There's vacancies up and down the street, and always businesses closing and opening," she said.
"Times are tough for everyone."
Ms Kaiser sells art and products by Aboriginal businesses from her shop, Wurrumay Collective, which opened its first physical store on Lonsdale Street in 2024.
"Having that physical space is so important," Ms Kaiser said. "People can come in and see how many of the mob are out there in all different avenues of business, and we bring them all into one place."
Like many other shop owners on Lonsdale Street, however, Ms Kaiser is feeling the pinch.
"Before this I ran my business online from my garage, and the outlays for that were completely minimal, but now there's a big difference," she said. "Foot traffic has declined significantly this year."
Wurrumay Collective's much-loved neighbour, florist Loulou Moxom of Moxom & Whitney, moved out of her Lonsdale Street location in January to take her business online.
In the 14 years Moxom & Whitney was on Lonsdale Street, the business paid more than $1 million in rent.
Rent costs weren't the main problem for Ms Moxom, however.
"It was a series of unfortunate events on Lonsdale. Floods, fires, COVID, shutdowns for construction [in 2021], and then there were impossible hoops to jump through to get any rent reduction."
Ms Moxom saw the number of vacancies on the street increase over the three years before she left.
"It's just not the Lonsdale Street of 10 years ago, that had all this amazing energy and joy and love. It turned into a daily grind and struggle to make ends meet, for everyone."
Anthony Ianelli, a co-owner of Bar Outro, said foot traffic decreased largely because Lonsdale Street is perceived as a construction zone, despite roadworks having been completed for the moment.
"People avoid it, they think there's construction and there's nowhere to park," he said.
"A few years ago, Lonsdale Street was buzzing six nights a week. It's pretty quiet now."
David Marshall AM, chair of the Canberra Region Tourism Leaders Forum, said vacancies are increasing in many Canberra shopping precincts that usually attract both locals and tourists.
"You would think that lowering the rent to try to find a tenant would be the best option for landlords," Mr Marshall said, "but they're holding onto them for the increases in property value".
Businesses across Canberra are facing a "perfect storm".
"It's also taxes, licence fees, the cost of food and alcohol, transport costs, and insurance costs. They're all going up."
Gus Armstrong, who has owned and operated Lonsdale Street restaurant Eightysix since 2013, said things aren't all bad.
"There's peaks and troughs. We're just f---ing deep into a trough."
Mr Armstrong is hopeful that foot traffic will pick up in the warmer months and that new businesses will move into the vacancies in Braddon.
"Lonsdale's still got a feel to it," he said.
"I've tried operating in Woden, in Ainslie, and wherever else. I always end up back here."
