Gales Farm Meats

“It’s not just energy bills, it’s everything: packaging, ingredients, minimum wage is going up… it’s all an extra expense for a small company to try to make money. I did contemplate packing it all in, because this is just one bill and we’ve also had increases

“One big problem with any trade is employment. There’s a forum online where butchers in Bristol and Bath are advertising jobs, and pre-Christmas there were about 25 businesses trying to get staff but people don’t seem to want the work. It’s plumbers, builders as well. The younger generation don’t seem to want to do a lot of these jobs. The manual jobs are suffering.”

The Filton Barbers

Mario Parinello has been running the Filton Barbers since

Quality Fresh Farm Meats

Quality Fresh Farm Meats

‘Spring Lamb Now Available’

• Chicken, Lamb, Beef & Pork

• Homemade Faggots

Barbecue meats, burgers, sausages, steaks, spare ribs, free marinade of your choice

• Speciality Sausages

• Homemade Pies and Pasties

• Deli Cheese and Chutney

• Marinated Meats/Kebabs –ideal for BBQ

• Great selection of Homemade Pies and Pasties

• Beef, Pork & Lamb Joints

• Home-cooked Meats and Cured Bacon

• Sausages & Sausagemeat

• Fresh Vegetables and Groceries

• Fresh Vegetables and Groceries always available

• Great selection of Pickles and Chutneys

Tel: 0117 969 1232 | www.galesfarmmeats.co.uk

4 Church View, Filton, BS34 7BT

Tel: 0117 969 1232 | www.galesfarmmeats.co.uk

4 Church View, Filton, BS34 7BT

Also Gales of Westbury Park, 31 North View, Westbury Park | Good old-fashioned service |

Also Gales of Westbury Park, 31 North View, Westbury Park | Good old-fashioned service

Order now for Easter

Lunchtime takeaway menu

"We were previously paying about £8,000 a year for electricity. And our suppliers estimated our annual costs should rise to £24,476.58."

- Stuart Gale, Gales Farm Meats

been paying £700 a year, but from April my annual bill will be just over £4,000 and there’s not a lot I can do about it."

-

"We have noticed people are keeping old pieces of equipment running for longer."

2010, although the salon has been on Gloucester Road since 1967. However, like so many businesses, this experienced barber has had to work extra hard in recent years in order to cope with the changing face of the high street and the different ways people live and work:

“People don’t come in as often. Before, people used to get their hair cut every four to six weeks, now it’s more like eight to 12 weeks. Plus a lot of people aren’t in the area anymore, many of the staff from the big offices are now primarily working from home, so in Filton alone you’re looking at 50,000 people missing

Graham Simmonds, goto iT

every day due to working from home.

“My business has halved since Covid. I’ve lost two members of staff so I’m working on my own now. Plus we’ve got the cost of living crisis and the electricity bill has gone through the roof, which I’m still in shock about. I’ve been paying £700 a year, but from April my annual bill will be just over £4,000 and there’s not a lot I can do about it. I can’t turn lights off, I can’t stop using equipment to run a business, so eventually I will have to put prices up which will affect the customers coming in because they can’t afford it because they’ve got bills going up their end. It’s a big shock at the minute.

“I’ve got to the point of wondering if it is worth staying open. My income isn’t increasing but my bills are.

It’s definitely a struggle at the minute. I’m sure I’ll still be here, people always need their hair cut, but how it will be I don’t know. I always want to be more positive but at the minute I can’t see a way out.”