Brighton businesses hit by drop in Christmas trade

Several businesses in Brighton have seen a significant dip in trade this Christmas.

Owners have suggested that the cost of living crisis could be the reason behind the noticeable drop in business.

Jan Pamir from Enter Gallery said they launched a "make or break" sale in order to generate funds to "keep us going".

She added: "For the last 33 years we have survived several recessions, a pandemic and Brexit, but we have never experienced as low footfall and sales as we are now."

Ms Pamir explained that footfall generally in 2024 had been much less than in previous years.

Gallery owner Lawrence Alkin added: "People are admiring the art but are being much more careful with their money and holding back when they would have ordinarily spent much more.

"There is a lot of uncertainty."

Rashed Zaman, operations manager at the Brighton branch of Cupp Bubble Tea, said he had seen a 40% drop in both sales and profit.

He explained: "During previous Christmas periods, we typically employed three to four staff, but this year we are down to just two staff members."

Mr Zaman said he thought the cost of living had been a major factor in impacting business in what was usually their busiest season.

Henry Luk, who owns Mooboo Bubble Tea in the city, said compared to 2023, turnover had dropped by 25%, the money spent per order was down 10% and footfall had decreased by 50%.

He thought more money was now spent being on necessities rather than "comfort food".

Vape store Red Eye Brighton said it turned over £7,600 in the first 13 days of December this year, compared with just less than £12,000 in the same period last year.

"Takings are massively down. [It] doesn't feel like Christmas shopping at all," a spokesperson from the store added.

Kyriakos Baxevanis, who runs the restaurant Nostos, said he had seen a decrease in footfall of about 15-20% compared with last year.

"While we've noticed strong support from our loyal customers, overall dining numbers have been impacted, likely due to the rising cost of living and tighter budgets."

Mr Baxevanis, who also runs Little Jasmine Therapies and Spa and Simply Urban Nail and Beauty, said his wellbeing businesses had also seen a drop of about 10% in footfall compared with last Christmas.

"Gift voucher purchases and premium treatment bookings have remained strong, which has helped balance the impact of the reduced footfall."

Despite a number of business in the city seeing a dip in trade, Verity Craig, co-owner of cocktail bar and restaurant Bohemia, said footfall had been similar to previous years, and party bookings were up.

Peter Allinson, director of Whiligig Toys, also said business had remained steady across their stores in Brighton, West Sussex and Kent.

Brighton BID CEO Gavin Stewart said: "There's no doubt that we aren't yet back to pre-pandemic levels of footfall, and shoppers are still feeling the brunt of the cost-of-living crisis.

"However, it's not a level playing field, and some businesses are faring better than others."

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