How is the weather affecting your business

jetpack101

Just interested in how small businesses are getting on in this weather.

Things are bad enough with the economy and for small business without adding this bad weather to the mix. I think this will Finnish off some businesses.

Myself I'm open since 9:30 and I have had only one customer in.

irishmotorist

Not a business owner, so I can't answer your question directly. I heard somebody on the radio saying that this will close shops down in town because nobody's going out. As far as I can see, all that will happen is that this weekend and next week will be bananas bumper bonus days for shops. People still need to buy presents/food/whatever. Time will just slow down this week so it will pick up next week.

cherryghost

Badly. Our sales have been down more than 2/3rds in the last 2 days. Barely running into profit at the moment

hotwhiskey

Its been absolutely been terrible since Saturday, running on a tight budget as it is the weather has but my head below the water line. I love the snow but it brings it's disvantages too. :rolleyes:

jetpack101

cherryghost wrote: »

Badly. Our sales have been down more than 2/3rds in the last 2 days. Barely running into profit at the moment

Same here..... its been getting progressively worse over the past year with the last 6 months only breaking even or some months going below that. I just think businesses can't take the hit right now. Had this weather happened in the good years then most if not all could get through it. As it stands it could be the final nail in the coffin for most.

Very said situation to be in.

Bullseye1

Well I cannot get into the office but at least I can work from home. But the local hotel is losing out big time with Christmas parties etc being canceled. The local authority has done nothing to make the roads passable. They are like ice. What is the point of rates.

whelan1

i am a farmer .... have been bringing water to animals for the last few days , its amazing how much you take water for granted

Cantona's Collars

No work for me since Friday,not good.This time of year is meant to be my busiest.The shops in Enniscorthy are closing as I type,many are struggling but this could kill them.:(

jetpack101

zerks wrote: »

No work for me since Friday,not good.This time of year is meant to be my busiest.The shops in Enniscorthy are closing as I type,many are struggling but this could kill them.:(

I think I'll be closing early today myself. Still only one customer all day so far.

delta_bravo

My local supermarket has been packed as people aren't driving to bigger shopping centres to do their shopping.

brian076

Haven't worked since last Friday night. As a driving instructor I can't take learners out in this weather.

Peace

I manage a team of onsite consultants and to say this is a balls is an understatement.

Dodgykeeper

Was just talking to a friend who runs a general shop in a small rural village and its boomtown for him, the Aldis etc are all very well but when you cant travel the local shops are the best!!

One for the little guy!

DWCommuter

As a business owner its effecting me. Im in the service industry (wedding videos) and I can't drive anywhere this week to deliver or take bookings. On top of that I have a wedding this Friday. Despite the snow covered ground, camera equipment doesn't really like sub zero temperatures.

A nightmare.

ebbsy

Busted pipes, footpaths not gritted, customers not coming out.

Its bad.

murpho999

I'm in the window blinds industry....business was already a major struggle.

Now this, as a result I cannot go out to do measures/sales and then fitters cannot go out to complete orders and get cash in.

Shop is also very quiet.

This is an absolute disaster as it should be my busiest time of year.

This situation could put me under for good, and it really annoys me how other posters on other threads put up posts pleading for more snow.

It may look beautiful but it stops everything, makes going out dangerous and impacts majorly on peoples lives and livelihoods, sooner it's gone the better

Danbo!

murpho999 wrote: »

This situation could put me under for good, and it really annoys me how other posters on other threads put up posts pleading for more snow.

It may look beautiful but it stops everything, makes going out dangerous and impacts majorly on peoples lives and livelihoods, sooner it's gone the better

True, Im just wondering when its going to end, and how long it will take to thaw, at least on roads, and return to some sort of normality. It was all well and good seeing the lovely few inches of snow at the weekend, but at this stage i've over a foot of the stuff and I know its gonna take ages to clear.

Phoenix Park

self employed, same hours worked but past few days business down maybe 50-60%, does my head in when you hear of public sector getting time off (paid of course, yet no tax paid by folk like us so no income generated these days, hence more debt etc etc ), man up people, life goes on!. Times are tough enough as it is without this turning people off leaving the house

Squiggle

Recession + Snow + budget = Fcuking disaster for Business.

tomcollins97

Just a thought...

...but if businesses can't cope with 4-5 low trading days are they not on the way out anyway??

Also, are business doing anything to encourage shoppers to use public transport to get to them?

Take for example the blind man, if I wan't a blind now I will still want it next week so business will pick up again.

Hence my thinking that if a business cannot survive a few days on snow they are finished anyway, even without the snow

whippet

It's a feckin disaster for my place ... I have five pallets worth of orders totalling about €40k sitting on a warehouse floor in Dublin 12 that couldn't be collected by our transport company due to road conditions ... The customers need this stock by Friday morning all over the country and the reality is that if I cant deliver they will buy from my competitors locally.

In a tough Market place this is a killer ... To be looking a a potential loss of €40k in one day is hard to swallow.

DOCARCH

Post has not been delivered to me since Friday and there is badly needed cheques in that post. Sorting office is up a hill and not accessible in this weather without a 4 x4.

TheRealPONeil

Phoenix Park wrote: »

... does my head in when you hear of public sector getting time off...

Brilliant - 18 posts in and the witch hunt is on.
Only waiting for the " serves the bleedin GAA right for coming up with the Croke Park deal" post - only equalled by "Nelson Mandela made a great bishop".

murpho999

tomcollins97 wrote: »

Just a thought...

...but if businesses can't cope with 4-5 low trading days are they not on the way out anyway??

Also, are business doing anything to encourage shoppers to use public transport to get to them?

Take for example the blind man, if I wan't a blind now I will still want it next week so business will pick up again.

Hence my thinking that if a business cannot survive a few days on snow they are finished anyway, even without the snow

Your pont about public transport is absolutely ridiculous especially seeing as a lot of buses are not running anyway.
I have a small shop, not Dundrum Town Centre with a Luas stop on its doorstep.
How do you expect me to encourage people to use public transport?

Also, my sales are usually made by me travelling to customer's house and measuring up, going through fabrics etc and closing deal in house. I cannot do that at the moment.

Understand what you're saying about wanting it next week, but my line of business has a lead time and people at this time of year want pre-Christmas installation and it's getting tight now if I can't place orders till next week. This can lead to a loss of orders and those customers might not come back.

Also, your point about 4-5 low trading days shows your lack of understanding of business. Lifeblood of all businesses is cash flow, and a small business like mine in the middle of a huge recession a loss of a weeks cash flow, which I now face this week can be absolutely devastating. No money coming in but bills still have to be paid so this makes things even tougher than they already were and puts a lot of businesses in a precarious position.

DWCommuter

DOCARCH wrote: »

Post has not been delivered to me since Friday and there is badly needed cheques in that post. Sorting office is up a hill and not accessible in this weather without a 4 x4.

A really important point that Im suffering from too. It doesnt help either when your bank decides to close early due to adverse weather conditions.

As for the snow taking out businesses that are going anyway...only a non business owner could come up with that daft as a brush ****e. Stick to the weather.:rolleyes:

df1985

The mad thing is if i had a reliable way in and out of town without much hassle id love to do my xmas shopping now, hate when its crowded.when this is all over there'll be a huge rush on for xmas.

jetpack101

...but if businesses can't cope with 4-5 low trading days are they not on the way out anyway??

Thats very unfair...... There are a lot of businesses out there that where doing just fine until the downturn. The downturn took away there grace period that would cover them for things like the weather we are currently having.

A good few friends of mine are just living hand to mouth at the moment just waiting for things to get better. In normal circumstances they where plodding along just fine. We are not in normal circumstances anymore and any little bump could seriously kill a lot of businesses.

This is also supposed to be my busiest time of year but with only 2 haircuts yesterday (I own a barber shop) and most likely the same today, I am in exactly the same boat.

I just hope most of you can keep it going until we get past this weather. I don't think people really understand how important local business is.

cormie

murpho999 wrote: »

Also, my sales are usually made by me travelling to customer's house and measuring up, going through fabrics etc and closing deal in house. I cannot do that at the moment.

Can I ask what's stopping you from doing the house calls? The roads are pretty bad but they wouldn't be bad enough to stop business for. I sourced a 2nd set of rims for one of the vehicles and fitted winter tyres to this set. Makes a huge difference compared to another, same make and model car, but with non winters. Essential investment if you need your car for business and shouldn't let the weather get in your way of you securing the business with a house call If this is something you'd be interested in, after a good bit of research, I went for Goodyear UltraGrip Ice + (WRT) but Goodyear Ultra Grip 7+ should also suffice for our conditions.

redalicat

I volunteer at a charity shop, and it was able to open on Monday, but with footpaths not gritted we had practically no one come in, only took a few bob. With the water pipes froze up and many of our volunteers are snowed in their homes, we just haven't been able to open up since.

Meanwhile, since I'm self-employed at home the rest of the time, it means I have no excuse to work as I can't go out.

Wertz

Pretty badly. I have a a minimum of 3 day's exterior work locally to do for myself, and a guy I do some work for has a few days of exterior work in Dublin.
Owing to low temps, paint can not be applied even if the roads/traffic allowed for us to get where we need to get to...
Since this is almost definitely the last bit of work I'll have before christmas, it's a f*ckin' disaster basically. The work will still be there when the weather changes, but right now I'm sitting at home doing damn all and spending money I can ill afford...

kenmc

brian076 wrote: »

Haven't worked since last Friday night. As a driving instructor I can't take learners out in this weather.

How else are they going to learn in the snow? This is one of the reasons we get "drivers" who can't drive in a tiny bit of white stuff. :rolleyes:

kenmc

kenmc wrote: »

How else are they going to learn in the snow? This is one of the reasons we get "drivers" who can't drive in a tiny bit of white stuff. :rolleyes:

Yeah I agree. Everyone's first lesson should be on a block of ice. That'll learn 'em.


:rolleyes:

Wertz

kenmc wrote: »

How else are they going to learn in the snow? This is one of the reasons we get "drivers" who can't drive in a tiny bit of white stuff. :rolleyes:

Oh FFS, you want the guy to take untested learners out on to the public roads in these conditions? My god half the people with a bloody license can't handle the roads at the moment nevermind L platers. I'm sure his insurance company would have something to say about such business practice....I agree that people need training for snow/ice driving but it needs to be in controlled conditions, not on the public road.

Could people stop criticising others for not doing things in their businesses due to weather? Do you think small businesses want to be cutting income for the sake of a bit of snow? Like it or not, some companies can't physically perform their business due to snow/ice/cold, not matter how silly it seems to others...

HellFireClub

tomcollins97 wrote: »

Just a thought...

...but if businesses can't cope with 4-5 low trading days are they not on the way out anyway??

Also, are business doing anything to encourage shoppers to use public transport to get to them?

Take for example the blind man, if I wan't a blind now I will still want it next week so business will pick up again.

Hence my thinking that if a business cannot survive a few days on snow they are finished anyway, even without the snow

In fairness, I think this is a very harsh and very inaccurate assessment of the national situation. It's not that businesses are not able to survive a period of snow, it's that this spell has arrived after what has been an unbelievably depressed 18 odd month period of consumer sentiment. In addition to that, an awful lot of cash and liquidity has been deliberately taken out of the economy in the last year especially as per the last budget.

I've a few friends who work for themselves and they have been literally knocked for six after the last 18 months, getting hit by bad debts as their own customers go to the wall, then 30 days credit for remaining customers ultimately turning into 3-6 months credit, and this is not for the want of chasing up invoices and pleading every day for a cheque, the money just is not there, nobody has money.

So this has been the case for a lot of businesses, certainly the few that I have a particular insight into, before there was any snow. I can only imagine that things have become several degrees worse for most small businesses with the arrival of snow...

Mr Benevolent

kenmc wrote: »

How else are they going to learn in the snow? This is one of the reasons we get "drivers" who can't drive in a tiny bit of white stuff. :rolleyes:

Just a thought...

...but if businesses can't cope with 4-5 low trading days are they not on the way out anyway??

Also, are business doing anything to encourage shoppers to use public transport to get to them?

Take for example the blind man, if I wan't a blind now I will still want it next week so business will pick up again.

Hence my thinking that if a business cannot survive a few days on snow they are finished anyway, even without the snow

Ah, more contenders for this year's 'Stupidest Post' award.

jetpack101

HellFireClub wrote: »

In fairness, I think this is a very harsh and very inaccurate assessment of the national situation. It's not that businesses are not able to survive a period of snow, it's that this spell has arrived after what has been an unbelievably depressed 18 odd month period of consumer sentiment. In addition to that, an awful lot of cash and liquidity has been deliberately taken out of the economy in the last year especially as per the last budget.

I've a few friends who work for themselves and they have been literally knocked for six after the last 18 months, getting hit by bad debts as their own customers go to the wall, then 30 days credit for remaining customers ultimately turning into 3-6 months credit, and this is not for the want of chasing up invoices and pleading every day for a cheque, the money just is not there, nobody has money.

So this has been the case for a lot of businesses, certainly the few that I have a particular insight into, before there was any snow. I can only imagine that things have become several degrees worse for most small businesses with the arrival of snow...

Here Here HellFireClub
We all need to pull together, the sooner we do the quicker things will get back to normal. We should start supporting the small local businesses that have always kept the money flowing.

dollydishmop

Running low on stock, orders to send out.

Replacement stock is ordered & paid for, but currently sitting in wholesalers....couriers aren't couriering.

Even if they can send it out tomorrow (apparently doubtful according to the van driver) I won't receive until Monday.

DOCARCH

Still no post here (since last Friday!) and given that we had an extra 6 inches of snow here today, can't see the postman making it here tomorrow either!

Calibos

delta_bravo wrote: »

My local supermarket has been packed as people aren't driving to bigger shopping centres to do their shopping.

Have a newsagents here in Bray. Above average takings on Sunday and Monday when we had 2 inches of lying snow here on the Seafront. The amount of Dog walkers and families heading for the novelty snow covered promenade and beach under the clear blue skies was great.

However with the progressive thaw which meant Tues, Wed and Thurs had no lying snow down here we found takings down 30% despite the fact we were even more accessible to all our locals and regulars. I have a feeling that with all the media reports of renewed Snowmageddon for us here which didn't materialise for this little 2kn strip of east coast and with the main roads in the town gritted and clear with the big supermarkets accessible, I think that people thought they should make hay while the sun shone so to speak and where overstocking their houses from the supermarkets, just in case which meant no trips down to our small shop to pick up some milk or butter or bread etc etc

A fresh dump of snow on Bray seafront would probably do our takings the world of good as it would prevent Tesco trips for a day or two and we'd get all the walkers in on their way to the seafront again.

fat__tony

Yet another nail in the coffin for small business owners in the country.

This may be going off point slightly but I'm truely puzzled at people who say for example have been made redundant from a job and then want to start their own business in Ireland.

Leave now, there's a better life abroad rather than struggling with a small business at home.

Mr Benevolent

fat__tony wrote: »

Yet another nail in the coffin for small business owners in the country.

This may be going off point slightly but I'm truely puzzled at people who say for example have been made redundant from a job and then want to start their own business in Ireland.

Leave now, there's a better life abroad rather than struggling with a small business at home.

Some people want to contribute to the local economy. Every euro spent in Ireland helps. I spend my money here too.

jetpack101

Calibos wrote: »

Have a newsagents here in Bray. Above average takings on Sunday and Monday when we had 2 inches of lying snow here on the Seafront. The amount of Dog walkers and families heading for the novelty snow covered promenade and beach under the clear blue skies was great.

However with the progressive thaw which meant Tues, Wed and Thurs had no lying snow down here we found takings down 30% despite the fact we were even more accessible to all our locals and regulars. I have a feeling that with all the media reports of renewed Snowmageddon for us here which didn't materialise for this little 2kn strip of east coast and with the main roads in the town gritted and clear with the big supermarkets accessible, I think that people thought they should make hay while the sun shone so to speak and where overstocking their houses from the supermarkets, just in case which meant no trips down to our small shop to pick up some milk or butter or bread etc etc

A fresh dump of snow on Bray seafront would probably do our takings the world of good as it would prevent Tesco trips for a day or two and we'd get all the walkers in on their way to the seafront again.

Thats horrible, you think "I'm finally getting a break" only to be knocked back down again.

This should be the busiest month of the year for most businesses.

Oasis_Dublin

Confab wrote: »

Ah, more contenders for this year's 'Stupidest Post' award.

Well argued!

Iancar29

It's terrible.... Just terrible!.....The fecking Bathroom IS FREEZING!!......:rolleyes: