The Cost of Staying

Lately, there has been so much talk about rising rates, soaring rents, and the pressure on the high street — particularly in hospitality.

It can feel relentless. Headlines telling us what is disappearing. What cannot survive. What may not make it through.

And then, while tidying, amongst the archives, I stumbled upon something unexpected. An old Sunday Times article, dated March 24, 1991, featuring us.

The journalist, Jenny Woolf, wrote:

“The specialty shops of London are fast disappearing, and the uniform business rate, combined with ever-soaring rents, will kill off many of those that are left.”

Not 2024. Not last month. Not last week. It stopped me in my tracks. Because suddenly I found myself wondering — is this a crisis unique to now? Or is this simply the rhythm of business? The cycle that keeps turning?

Prices have always risen. Things have always cost more than they used to.

A pint of milk cost more in my childhood than it did in my mother’s. And it will cost more still when my daughter buys it. Our parents bought their homes for a fraction of what we are paying today. Inflation has always existed. It always will. But knowing that doesn’t make it any less daunting when you’re in it.

The article from 1991 mentioned that rents in Soho had soared, and businesses — including us — were facing potential increases of 400 per cent. Four hundred per cent.

More recently, we watched coffee prices hit a 40-year high, some beans more than quadrupling per tonne. When increases are gradual, you can adapt. You adjust. You breathe and recalibrate. But when you’re faced with the possibility of an extra £100,000 a year across the board, it keeps you awake at night.

What struck me most in that old article, though, was this line:

“Some of these people who run these little shops are determined not to be forced out. They like their way of life and their customers. They don’t want to close… Instead, they diversify, mingling high-profit lines with staples, seeking small, obscure, unusual suppliers.”

It could have been written about us today.

We search and create exciting coffees. Limited editions. Artisan confectionery. Beautiful machinery. We are still mixing the staple with the special. Still adapting. Still evolving.

And perhaps most importantly, still offering a warm welcome in an age that often feels like a series of cold transactions.

Yes, our prices rise too. They must. That is the reality of survival. But they will always be fair. Considered. Honest. Inflation is nothing new. Volatility is nothing new. Uncertainty is nothing new. What is new, each time, is how it feels when you’re living through it.

We remain here not just because it is a good business — though it is — but because it is part of who we are. It is our home. Our history. We grew up here. These walls have seen decades of change, challenge, reinvention. This year we celebrate 80 years of our family running the shop.

So, we adapt. We steady ourselves. We keep going.

And through all of it, one thing has remained constant.

You. Your loyalty. Your support. Your decision to walk through our door, to choose us, to stay with us. For that — truly — we are grateful.