Hospitality and Energy Bills

Knutsford’s hospitality businesses have rallied together to raise awareness of the threat to their businesses from the current energy bill crisis and are calling on the new Secretary of State for Energy Security to urgently bring in support to affected businesses before they are forced to close in the face of rocketing energy bills.

The Tea Room on Cotton Shop Yard has seen electricity bills increase 1,000% - shooting from £300-£400 per month to £3,000 per month.  Owner Harriet Henry said “What are we to do, charge £40 for a sandwich? Of course, we cannot do that. Unless we receive some help, we will no longer have a sustainable business.  Something needs to be done”.

Knutsford has long boasted a thriving hospitality offering, drawing visitors from across the region to enjoy an evening out and hospitality makes up 18% of the businesses in the Knutsford High Street. The 9 businesses photographed alone provide employment for almost 100 people.

Tatton Perk opened their Malt Street café last year close to The Moor; owner Mark Lee-Kilgariff says “We do have a loyal customer base, but we can't keep increasing costs to cover our overheads. We are extremely aware of declining customer confidence and want to avoid increasing prices for struggling customers. This is a nightmare scenario not just for hospitality businesses but other businesses in our town”.

Town Centre Manager, Sandra Curties, has written to Grant Shapps MP on behalf local businesses urging his new department to urgently look at the impact of energy prices on local businesses and highlighting the dire consequences for UK high streets should businesses across the country be forced to close.

The White Bear has been a stalwart of the town centre for over a century and has seen their energy bills shoot up from £750 per month to £2,600. Publican Kelly Vickers spoke of her extreme concern about the impact this will have on the wider community “Pubs are the life and soul of our community - we are a local pub, our customers are our friends. If we close, and we will not be the only ones, where will our customers go? The repercussions of this are more than empty buildings, which are bad enough, a great British tradition is under threat.”

Town Mayor, Cllr Mike Houghton, said, “Supporting the town centre is one of the Town Council’s key priorities and we know that hospitality is a vital part of the shopping experience. When people shop, they often stop for a drink and a bite to eat. By highlighting hospitality, we are highlighting a threat to all our high street businesses.  They are dependent on each other, and we know alongside hospitality sectors such as health and beauty and dry cleaners are also suffering with unsustainable increased energy costs.”

Pictured (L to R) -Harriet Henry of The Tea Room

                              Katy Rickett of Dexter and Jones

                              Kelly Vickers of The White Bear

                              Ian Pickering of Cranford Café

                              Jemma Marshall of The Courthouse Cheshire

                              Caitlin Forden of April’s Kitchen

                              Mark Lee-Kilgariff of Tatton Perk

                              Hattie Cufflin of Hot Cocoa

                              Caterine Hooper of Detajler

Photo Credit  - Sandra Curties