"The way things are going, I probably won’t be here this time next year or at Christmas", Peter Doherty sighs. His café, Coffee House in Withington, offers one of the cheapest breakfasts in Manchester.
But due to the soaring bills he faces, Peter has had to put prices up at the Copson Street greasy spoon by around 50p. It may seem like a small amount, but it's creeping increases like this that Peter fears will put him out of business.
Gas and electricity price caps went up in April. While many people are yet to see the full effect of these increases during the summer months, the news that price caps could rise to £3,628 in October has left many people, including Peter, worried.
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“I put [the prices up] by like 50p, but I hadn’t put my prices up before that for eight years", he said. "Now you can’t even make money. It’s costing me. The way things are going, I probably won’t be here this time next year or at Christmas.
“The way things are at the moment, you can’t make a profit, it’s all coming out of your own money and there’s no point doing that."
Peter said price rises have left him struggling to pay the rent. "If Debenhams and people like that can’t do it, how has anyone else got a chance?"
Competition from nearby chains is also putting a strain on business, he said.
“The swimming baths has opened a café inside it. Which is nice. (But) it used to be, if you had a café, that was a café, if you had a butcher’s it was a butchers. Now it’s like Sainsbury’s has got a café, everyone’s got a café.
“If you’re already a café and everyone’s got a café, the only way I can adapt is by selling DVDs or something - something that’s not anything to do with what I do.
“The prices have been going up and up for years anyway but this one now, it’s just doubled in a short space of time. The electric going up, the price of the ingredients going up, obviously I’ve got a landlord, they need to pay more rent so that goes up.
“It’s just a never ending circle of things going up. The only people who are going to carry on and survive are places like Costa Coffee and McDonald’s. The prices are going to end up being like down south. We’ll have to start charging the same as the south, but we’re not getting the wage of the south.”
A regular at Coffee House café, who asked only to be named as Brenda, is worried that if the café closes, she won’t have a place to go to meet her friends and enjoy a cheap cup of coffee.
“I live in Urmston, but I come here for the people. It’s value coming in here", she said.
“Peter didn’t put the prices up for so long. He did and now with the news (that price caps will be rising again in October), I said he’s going to have to put the prices up again.
“At the moment, I can afford a meal. I come in about three times a week. I see my friends, but if they put prices up, I don’t know if I’ll be able to keep it up and then it'll decline.”
Brenda said she's noticed prices rising everywhere.
“Some things in the shops have gone up, not just pennies but pounds. I went into a shop and thought it’s gone up sky high. If people lose their jobs, they won’t be able to stay in their homes, there will be more people on the streets.
“It’s everyday, you see how prices are going up. I don’t know how people are managing, you can’t even see the doctor to talk about it.
“ I’m waiting for the winter and for it to get worse. I think I’ll just buy a big jumper.”
Further down Copson Street, the owners of Fuse smoothie and juice bar have tried to sell the business following a huge increase in their energy bill. The owner, Soraya Dehghan, explained: “They put my electric up because the contract came to an end and they put me on a roll over contract.
“I got a bill for £500 for one month. If this carries on, it will get to £3,000 and I won’t be able to pay it.”
Soraya told the Manchester Evening News that the price per unit of electric had increased from 14p to 70p and she was now in talks with the ombudsman.
She added: “I wrote them letters saying you’re going to bankrupt me. I’ve been here 11 years and I can’t afford it. Everything’s gone up. The cheese, I used to pay £6.99 for the (large) block, now it’s £9.19.
“I put the prices up about four months ago, I tried to sell the business, when winter comes, I won’t last.”
Residents of Withington are feeling the pinch as well. Pauline, who asked to be known by first name only, is terrified about the impact of rising prices. She said: “I just worry all the time, to tell the truth. I’ve not had the heating on, just fluffy throws instead.
“I’m too scared to put the heating on, and with the shopping, I’ve noticed about £7 or £8 a week increase. It’s terrible. Look at bottles of oil, it’s disgusting. I don’t use much, but my son does, he’s got four kids. It’s disgusting. It’s everything, even a bar of soap!”
Another Withington resident, Tricia Smith, who works at the Christie, explained that she has had to put in for overtime and work carer shifts to cover the increases in her bills.
“All the bills are going up, they only went up a couple of months ago. I got onto them and said ‘I can’t afford to pay you’.
“Me and my husband work and we can’t afford a holiday. I’m going overtime, I’m coming home after doing 12 hour shifts just waiting for the weekend.
“Everything else with tax, insurance, you watch the news and the gas and electric are making so much money. It’s like the 1980s, when people had to give up their houses. It’s just horrible at the minute, I don’t know how I’m going to be at Christmas.”
Spiralling bills and other economic factors are threatening business owners in the hospitality sector across Greater Manchester, says night time economy advisor Sacha Lord.
He said: "Energy price increases, soaring inflation and recruitment struggles have created economic pressures that any business would find hard to withstand. Add in two years of Covid-related financial problems, and the day-to-day becomes near impossible for any business owner in hospitality.
"Trading is now unviable for many and I'm being contacted every day from landlords who are unable to continue their businesses.
"From what I'm hearing and seeing on the ground, I think we will sadly see many closures over the next 12 months. On Friday, Mayor, Andy Burnham and I met with operators from across Greater Manchester and we will continue to discuss the situation at length to determine how we can best support the sector at this time."
HMRC has been contacted for comment.
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