Plenty of hospitality, but High street life is tough
RETAIL BEARING BRUNT OF COST OF LIVING CRISIS IN POPULAR TOWN CENTRE
AS one of the most popular high streets on Teesside, Yarm is known for its eclectic mix of both places to drink and places to shop.
From drinking spots such as The Black Bull and The Keys to shops like The House and Joules, Yarm has plenty to keep visitors and residents entertained.
However, as the cost of living crisis continues to bite, is the high street seeing an impact as punters become more selective about where to spend their money?
We took a stroll along the cobbles to speak to people about whether they have noticed a change in the area – for better or for worse – and asked businesses whether they’d seen the impact of rising costs firsthand.
Strickland and Holt, which sells a variety of items such as crafts, cards, ornaments and has a little coffee shop, is typically one of the high street’s busier spots. A staff member said she understands why people are spending less, but that business is still going strong.
The Ingleby Barwick resident said: “There are now differences in income. I think initially, I thought after Covid it was quieter but it’s starting to pick up now. But inflation is going up, and prices are going up too.”
Another store worker added she noticed the high street was much busier “when the sun is out” but that she doesn’t “think it has been as busy as before.”
Stephen, who has lived just behind the high street for around 10 years, said the area has “changed” over his time as a resident. While he understands that food places can “make more money,” he said the area still has some struggles for visitors such as parking or lack of other shops. The 65-year-old said: “It really is all just food, and they can make more money.
“We’ve still got a lot of people coming but parking is a big problem. For me, it’s gotten worse.
“It used to have a vibrant mix of
clothing shops but now there is not, and you come for pubs and cafes.
“Yarm is a lovely place, but I just think it seems they’ve got too much into hospitality.”
Another frequent high street visitor said: “Everyone is seeing differences in how people are spending money. You don’t want to see your bank account drop.”
When it came to footfall on the high street, he added: “I don’t think there’s been that much change.”
The House, a designer clothing store, is one of the largest shops in Yarm, selling everything from Ralph Lauren to Vivienne Westwood.
Lucy Healy, who has worked there for six years, said hospitality doesn’t seem to be seeing the cost of living impact as much as retail.
She said: “Before Covid, the shop was busier than it is now. The prices of everything are going up – last season’s clothes were much cheaper.
“I’ve noticed how much things are going up – there are people not shopping as much. Pubs are busy, but more on weekends and in the hot weather.”
“When you go [food] shopping it’s costing so much, it’s almost easier to get tea out!”
Store worker Tracy Wharton, from Eaglescliffe, added: “A lot of people are walking about [Yarm] and not spending, Yarm is a bit of a ‘mooch around’ place. There are lots of little independent shops that have clothes.”
The Black Bull, which was revamped back in 2018, continues to be one of the town’s popular pubs, with its own huge beer garden.
The manager said: “There’s been no impact for us really. For us personally, on the high street, we haven’t seen an impact from the cost of living from a customer point of view.”
The manager added that the weather has a huge impact on customer numbers, with the recent heatwave seeing hundreds flock to the venue. She added: “It depends on the weather.
“We had a huge weekend. Last weekend, we were probably about 100 people away from capacity, which is 750 people, as it was really warm.”
Further down the high street is Fourteen Drops, a small but popular bar and shop that specialises in hundreds of wines from across the world.
Staff member Catriona McLain said it’s been a bit “up and down” in recent months in terms of footfall.
She said: “Normally, weekends are kind of variable, but we definitely noticed a bit of a drop-off from March and April. Things have started to pick up a little bit more, but not quite as normal.
“We can really tell when it’s been a quieter month – because we are so small, we rely on having quite a high turnover of tables. We’ve got a pretty loyal customer base and everyone tries and comes in as much as they can to keep us going.”
In terms of the high street, Catriona added: “It is not as busy as it used to be on a weekend – it used to be really really [busy]. I can imagine retail might be harder hit.”
Both residents and high street workers pointed out how there seems to be a divide in the cost of living issues facing Yarm.
Although the majority of places in the town have seen an impact of rising costs and footfall, it appears that retail is seeing more of the brunt of the cost of living crisis.