Cost of living: Local supermarket boom as inflation jumps

A Welsh supermarket chain has said that the cost of living crisis has led to a boom in business.

It comes as latest inflation figures show that prices rose by 11.1% in the year to October - a 41-year high.

CK Foodstores said the rising cost of petrol meant customers were shopping locally more in a bid to save cash.

"I thought people are struggling, prices are going up, for everything, but for us it's better," said Melanie Jenkins, who manages one of the stores.

Inflation, which measures how the cost of living changes over time, is being largely driven driven by higher energy bills.

The latest inflation figure, released on Wednesday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the highest since October 1981.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the government would set out its plans on Thursday to help bring inflation under control.

He blamed "the aftershock of Covid and Putin's invasion of Ukraine" for driving up inflation in the UK and around the world.

Mr Hunt said that he would have to take "tough but necessary decisions" on tax and spending to bring down debt and support sustainable growth while protecting the most vulnerable.

The company said it was selling more, despite prices in September being 10.1% higher than a year earlier.

For months prices have been rising at the fastest rate in 40 years, with the steepest rises for food and energy.

CK Foodstores, which has 33 stores in Wales, buys from wholesalers and as locally as possible to keep down transport costs. It says customers are doing the same.

Carmarthenshire's Pontyberem store manager Melanie Jenkins said: "Our takings are up because a lot of local people would rather shop locally than drive to Llanelli or Carmarthen to buy from the big stores because it's costing them more petrol."

She believed more people were also applying for local jobs to save on petrol.

"All our staff here live locally," she said.

"I only live two minutes down the road and it's not costing me petrol as it would if I worked in Llanelli."

CK Foodstores employ 657 staff and as energy and transport costs have risen it has changed the way it operates.

It has developed a centralised bakery in Llanelli but in the last year it has seen the price of flour rise 35%, milk by a similar amount and eggs 20%.

It has tried to use less diesel by buying locally.

Operations director Alun Littlejohns said: "We are lucky we can work with our supply chains here in west Wales, we can work with local suppliers who want to develop their brands".

He said customers were not spending less but they were more aware of food mileage and waste.

In the St Elli shopping centre, in Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, there is less confidence.

Juliet Campbell, of Bradleys Coffee Shop, said customers were eating teacake instead of sandwiches and drinking smaller coffees.

"We're not going to make much of a profit or any profit over the next couple of months," she said.

She said she was worried as she did not want to have to cut staff.

"We are walking a fine line as we are," she said.

Customer Laura Birkett is worried her fixed rate mortgage will rise.

"I don't have any money to put aside because its all going on bills and things," said Ms Birkett, who works in an estate agent.

"I'm trying not to spend so much in my lunch breaks, trying to bring my own food but you can't do much about it because it's everywhere."