It seems hard to believe that Candid’s doors have been closed for nearly a quarter of a year… In some respects this has flown by. But the longer this ‘current normal’ goes on, the slower it seems to get.
In the first days of lockdown we launched Candid’s Home Delivery and Click & Collect services. Since 17 March, when we closed our doors to the public and switched to this new business model, we’ve fulfilled over 1200 orders and travelled a combined delivery distance of over 1800 miles! These orders have been placed by 395 unique customers. If you are one of those people, we want to say a massive THANK YOU!
Every single order not only purchases beer but also buys Candid’s future.
When we started out on this new way of life back in March, we said that we were going to need our customers more than ever. This fact hasn’t changed.
In the first month, we were absolutely bowled over by the passionate response from so many people. Orders were incredibly buoyant, and the outlook looked really positive.
But as we come to the end of our third month of lockdown, sales have quietened down. On average we’ve seen sales fall by 25% month on month.
This isn’t by any means danger territory for Candid. However, if this trend continues for the foreseeable future then the picture could change quite rapidly.
Now, we want to say that we know things are tight and tough for many people at this time. We know that if customers have been furloughed, expendable income will be incredibly limited. For other customers, income will have completely evaporated or dropped substantially.
We want to be clear that we understand this and we’re not seeking for people to spend money they don’t have.
But on the eve of many shops reopening - albeit not Candid at this stage - we want to issue a clarion call on behalf of local and independent businesses up and down the country, who will might find themselves in similar positions to us.
Whilst personal finances will be playing a part in current sales patterns, we think there are probably other factors at play too.
In those early days of lockdown there seemed to be a great determination to ‘shop local’. Candid certainly benefitted from this positive response to the challenging situation, and no doubt many other local businesses found the same.
But 12 weeks into lockdown, the momentum seems to be dropping.
The novelty of lockdown is dead, for sure!!! The weird holiday-like vibe in those early lockdown days, aided by a spell of glorious weather, certainly helped Candid’s initial sales, but inevitably this was never going to last.
These elements were both extraordinary factors that produced an exceptional boost during the first month of lockdown - we get that.
But these factors aside, there are other trends that are having an impact on us.
In Candid’s case, we are now competing for custom with wholesalers who have either stopped their trade supply altogether, to sell direct to individuals via new or established customer websites, or are wanting to get the best of both worlds by introducing public facing websites alongside their trade routes.
This has been a disappointing and frustrating development in the supply chain - and a risky longer term strategy for wholesalers, in our opinion - but there have also been shining examples of wholesalers who have consciously avoided taking this path, and for that we’re really grateful. We will repay this loyalty.
Similarly, breweries have upped their ‘direct to consumer’ routes to market. We understand the need for this, and don’t begrudge them for those decisions, but it does present an additional element of competition that was perhaps less prevalent before.
And of course, access to supermarkets has become increasingly easier since the start of lockdown, and no doubt the lure of quality craft beer at supermarket prices is a mouthwatering proposition. In some ways, this hasn’t changed from before lockdown, but we’ve noticed supermarket choice has increased over the past couple of months in particular at prices that independent shops simply can’t come near to matching.
You might argue, “that’s business”, or this sort of competition can only be good news for the consumer.
But the risk is these micro trends and consumer behaviours end up having a macro and longer term impact on local economies.
On a local level up and down the country, businesses like Candid are feeling the effects of these trends and, more generally, lockdown fatigue.
Last week, BBC News highlighted a swathe of businesses that have fallen through the gaps of state support during these times - Candid is one of these businesses. We are not eligible for any of the Government grants. And whilst we’ve been able to make use of the furlough scheme, this has limited impact for a small family-run business like ours.
Over the coming days and weeks you will be told by the Government that pubs and bars, and places like Candid, can reopen.
It is one thing to say what CAN happen, but that MAY not translate into a feasible financial reality.
Until we have clear guidance as to what conditions would allow reopening, we are simply guessing. But we foresee the following challenges:
- Social distancing - if the 2 metre rule remains, this will require such a drastic reduction in potential customer numbers, and therefore potential sales, that it would hardly cover the basic overheads of opening.
- Staffing - there is speculation that bar service won’t be permitted, so table service or some other socially-distanced model will have to be employed. This might be more feasible for pub chains, but for small independents this would require a significant increase in staffing which, again, isn’t financially viable. What about our beer fridges? We’d have to remove customer access to minimise possible contamination points, and move to an ordering system which would also require additional staffing measures. And then there’s the likely need for an increase in cleaning and sanitising, which would also require increased staffing provision.
- Track and trace - if we get the phone call saying we’ve been in contact with a customer who has contracted Coronavirus and therefore need to self isolate for 14 days, we potentially find ourselves in a worse position than we do currently.
But back to the here and now.
On a local level, we have a choice to make. What sort of town do we want to re-emerge post-lockdown?
Do we want a town comprising solely of chains and corporations? Or perhaps to live a satellite existence serviced by online retailers and retail parks?
But if we value an independent retail scene and want to see this flourish for years to come, our actions now will make all the difference.
The clarion call is this: LOVE LOCAL AND SHOP SMALL.
So tomorrow, this week, the rest of this month, next month, and the months after that etc etc, please get behind your local independent businesses. Please try and find ways to support and shop local.
And on behalf of Candid, please continue to make use of our current services, whether that be a local home delivery, a Click & Collect order, or a postal delivery to anywhere in the UK.
If you’re yet to make an order, we’d love to hear from you! And if it’s been a while since your last one, we miss you!
And to everyone: please help spread the word. Even if placing an order isn’t possible or desirable, please help us play the social media algorithm hokey-cokey by liking our posts, sharing them, tagging them, commenting on them etc.
We need you now more than ever. Please don’t leave this to chance and please cherish our independent retailers.
Team Candid
