Timmins businesses struggle to balance prices vs. profits amidst high inflation
Balancing profits and customer affordability is an age-old challenge for a small business, but high inflation is making it especially difficult.
Timmins-based Aline's Tea Shop is feeling the pain of the current 7.7 per cent rate of inflation -- the highest in about 40 years – and is trying to keep prices reasonable by compromising on profit margins.
Still, owner Claudette Lambert said her costs have gone up and while the store saw a surprise spike in patronage during the pandemic, sales are now at their lowest in years.
"The food prices, the fuel. I mean, when you think about it, everything has gone up so much," Lambert said of why prices at her store are higher and possibly keeping some customers away.
"This has been going on now for about three weeks."
But higher prices don't necessarily mean higher profits on her end. Lambert said if she priced her products to achieve profit margins of previous years, she would likely drive away far more of her clientele.
It's a similar challenge at local electronics repair store Nick's Phone Repairs, according to owner Nicholas Peever.
Peever has a five-year plan to keep his prices as stable as he can, but said inflation has not made it easy.
The parts needed to repair new devices are more expensive than usual, he said, while older models are still affordable to repair.
The struggle is trying not to punish clients for the extra costs, who are likely struggling themselves with the impacts of inflation elsewhere.
"I'm always trying to be reasonable with that and just kind of be competitive with my prices," Peever said.
"You try to make it worth it. What I do is just try to make sure that the experience with the customers is great."
The Timmins Chamber of Commerce suggested in an email that it might be time to revive the "support local" mentality that saw a heavy focus during the pandemic.
Chamber president Rob Knox said while northern Ontario industries tend to insulate communities from economic hits, inflation is a widespread concern.
"More than 500 of our 625 members are true small businesses, employing less than 30 employees and trying their best to keep people employed," Knox said in a statement.
"We’re not immune, however, to the rising inflationary rates, the likes of which we have not seen in 40 years … This is why we must continue to find what we need in Timmins and now, more than ever, support our local businesses.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Saskatchewan households will continue to receive carbon tax rebate: Trudeau
Households in Saskatchewan will continue to receive Canada Carbon Rebate payments, despite the province refusing to remit the federal carbon price on natural gas, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.