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The state of the economy at the street level

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Just spending little bit of time analysing my client book... I have clients ranging from young ladies working at Coles and struggling to afford their horse, to the truly obscenely wealthy for whom price is no object.

This means that depending on what needs being done that the invoice can be anywhere from $60, to 3 or 4 or $500 per horse, every 5 weeks.

Observations so far.... The obscenely wealthy still don't really care, as long as what I charge is fair for the work done. The lowest level just love the horses and will put out to afford what needs being done, within reason.

It's kind of the middle where things are changing, asking me to compromise on what I do, so they are able to afford to keep them going.

It hasn't really affected my bottom line so far as I have a waiting list for work, I just take on others... but there is a level where things are really starting to take effect.

FWIW
 
wayneL said:
It hasn't really affected my bottom line
Click to expand...
Well, that's just a little bit of an inaccuracy. Because I'm a sucker, I will tend to do extra work at no charge, if I think the horse really needs it but the client can't afford it.

It's never really appreciated because I don't say much about it, but whatevah :p

</virtuesignalling>
 
Just an observation but I'm noticing a lot of posts for people offering basic services, eg cleaning or garden maintenance, posted on a local community online group recently.

Go back 12 months and there were no such posts at all and it would tend to be the opposite "anyone know a good carpet cleaner" type questions. :2twocents
 
Smurf1976 said:
Just an observation but I'm noticing a lot of posts for people offering basic services, eg cleaning or garden maintenance, posted on a local community online group recently.

Go back 12 months and there were no such posts at all and it would tend to be the opposite "anyone know a good carpet cleaner" type questions. :2twocents
Click to expand...
Anything to glean a bit of cash as things tighten up. I've been getting a fair bit of late. Half as M rC. Ash and the balance paid EFT
 
Smurf1976 said:
Just an observation but I'm noticing a lot of posts for people offering basic services, eg cleaning or garden maintenance, posted on a local community online group recently.

Go back 12 months and there were no such posts at all and it would tend to be the opposite "anyone know a good carpet cleaner" type questions. :2twocents
Click to expand...
Yep. Not too many 'Help Wanted" signs in retail windows either.

.... and ... Coles is fielding 18 applicants for every job it advertises and bosses say competition for roles in other industries is surging, in signs rising interest rates are taking a toll on the employment market.

Coles, with more than 120,000 employees, said the number of applications for each role had risen from an average of 11 a year ago.

Screenshot_20230604-145049_Google.jpg
 
Car spaces outside retail strips are very easy to find across the eastern suburbs. Never seen that before - usually it's a bunfight to get a parking spot. Discretionary spending must be significantly down.

Andrews cancelling the Comm Games was a big deal. Labour governments tend to spend like there's no tomorrow, so for him to do this is a bad sign.

On the positive side, they're saying inflation is on the way down.
 
Just back from a chamber of commerce lunch.
Sat next to a bloke who owns three food /takeaway shops in the food court of one of the shopping centres in Shepparton.
He has been trying to sell them for 18 months, with no lookers, much less buyers.
When the leases run out on each one towards the end of the year, they will close.
Says costs of doing business versus the rewards is going in all the wrong directions.
One of his biggest gripes was trying to find out what is the correct award under which he should pay stff.
Could never get a straight answer, was told its was all in the regs.
Ot may have been, but he says it was written in Latin.
I have no doubt someone else will come into the space he left behind, although as he says, two of the other food outlets in the food court have already closed over the past 2 months.
Mick
 
mullokintyre said:
Just back from a chamber of commerce lunch.
Sat next to a bloke who owns three food /takeaway shops in the food court of one of the shopping centres in Shepparton.
He has been trying to sell them for 18 months, with no lookers, much less buyers.
When the leases run out on each one towards the end of the year, they will close.
Says costs of doing business versus the rewards is going in all the wrong directions.
One of his biggest gripes was trying to find out what is the correct award under which he should pay stff.
Could never get a straight answer, was told its was all in the regs.
Ot may have been, but he says it was written in Latin.
I have no doubt someone else will come into the space he left behind, although as he says, two of the other food outlets in the food court have already closed over the past 2 months.
Mick
Click to expand...
I don't know Mick the local food court at the shopping centre we patronise seems to be going pretty well.
Still have to queue a bit to be served.
But perhaps the days when we do eat there are the busy ones.
The owner of the one we like the most, self serve chinese nosh keeps saying no complaints much plenty people come and eat.
 
farmerge said:
I don't know Mick the local food court at the shopping centre we patronise seems to be going pretty well.
Still have to queue a bit to be served.
But perhaps the days when we do eat there are the busy ones.
The owner of the one we like the most, self serve chinese nosh keeps saying no complaints much plenty people come and eat.
Click to expand...
Good afternoon @farmerge
Company owns several restaurants, kin perform the heavy lifting, rcw1 old head on old shoulders ... just punts and drinks the profits ha ha ha ha ha ha. Seriously, not as hard as picking in the fields or fencing in the hot sun, each to our own... But, Hospitality Industry most dynamic, high turnover of staff, longish unusual hours people with families don't really want to work or these days noone wants to work, difficult to keep good staff like most things .... gotta pay over award and still they winge and whine ... don't know how good they got it... and then of course are the high costs ... rent and ever growing costs of product let alone wages...

Gotta a motto, guessing you would like, FioFO yes it does mean that ha ha ha ha the greatest HR inspired strategy .... ha ha ha ha ha; by all means use it :) rcw1 just looks at them and thinks FioFO as sincere as is possible... funnieeeeeeee

Like back in the day, (exception - light beer these days) all venues put on a cartoon every Sunday lunchtime paid for by rcw1. Isn't that nice... Oh well everyone is entitled to a beer after a long week at the salt mine; abit like the Italians in the tobacco heyday ... they bought pellets of NQ Lager, ha ha ha ha ha

At the minute good coin coming in. Good whilst it lasts.... :)
Have a good day bloke, what's left of it.

Kind regards
rcw1
 
I've lived long enough to know that most food outlets that don't cater to the cheap end of the market in a downturn get left behind. The new retail figures for June will be released at the end of next week but the figures for May still look solid to me.

1689835132024.png
www.abs.gov.au

Retail Trade, Australia, May 2023

Monthly and quarterly estimates of turnover and volumes for retail businesses, including store and online sales.
www.abs.gov.au www.abs.gov.au
 
rcw1 said:
Good afternoon @farmerge
Company owns several restaurants, kin perform the heavy lifting, rcw1 old head on old shoulders ... just punts and drinks the profits ha ha ha ha ha ha. Seriously, not as hard as picking in the fields or fencing in the hot sun, each to our own... But, Hospitality Industry most dynamic, high turnover of staff, longish unusual hours people with families don't really want to work or these days noone wants to work, difficult to keep good staff like most things .... gotta pay over award and still they winge and whine ... don't know how good they got it... and then of course are the high costs ... rent and ever growing costs of product let alone wages...

Gotta a motto, guessing you would like, FioFO yes it does mean that ha ha ha ha the greatest HR inspired strategy .... ha ha ha ha ha; by all means use it :) rcw1 just looks at them and thinks FioFO as sincere as is possible... funnieeeeeeee

Like back in the day, (exception - light beer these days) all venues put on a cartoon every Sunday lunchtime paid for by rcw1. Isn't that nice... Oh well everyone is entitled to a beer after a long week at the salt mine; abit like the Italians in the tobacco heyday ... they bought pellets of NQ Lager, ha ha ha ha ha

At the minute good coin coming in. Good whilst it lasts.... :)
Have a good day bloke, what's left of it.

Kind regards
rcw1
Click to expand...
Ah rcw you are certainly one of a kind. love it.
 
rcw1 said:
Good afternoon @farmerge
Company owns several restaurants, kin perform the heavy lifting, rcw1 old head on old shoulders ... just punts and drinks the profits ha ha ha ha ha ha. Seriously, not as hard as picking in the fields or fencing in the hot sun, each to our own... But, Hospitality Industry most dynamic, high turnover of staff, longish unusual hours people with families don't really want to work or these days noone wants to work, difficult to keep good staff like most things .... gotta pay over award and still they winge and whine ... don't know how good they got it... and then of course are the high costs ... rent and ever growing costs of product let alone wages...

Gotta a motto, guessing you would like, FioFO yes it does mean that ha ha ha ha the greatest HR inspired strategy .... ha ha ha ha ha; by all means use it :) rcw1 just looks at them and thinks FioFO as sincere as is possible... funnieeeeeeee

Like back in the day, (exception - light beer these days) all venues put on a cartoon every Sunday lunchtime paid for by rcw1. Isn't that nice... Oh well everyone is entitled to a beer after a long week at the salt mine; abit like the Italians in the tobacco heyday ... they bought pellets of NQ Lager, ha ha ha ha ha

At the minute good coin coming in. Good whilst it lasts.... :)
Have a good day bloke, what's left of it.

Kind regards
rcw1
Click to expand...
The Flintstones would be my pjck.
 

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