The manager of a downtown Charlottetown business says his staff have lost 10 per cent of their hours this month alone.
Trevor Pharoah says everyone in the small business community is feeling squeezed by the numerous winter storms and Beanz Espresso Bar & Café is no different.
“We’ve been closed this winter more than in the past 20 years,’’ said Pharoah.
“I have a full-time girl out back and she got here after missing four days of work. She’s looking to pick up shifts to get the hours and pay the bills.’’
More than 16 feet of snow has fallen in the Charlottetown area.
There have been six major snowstorms that dumped at least 30 centimetres on the capital city and two which brought more than 60 centimetres.
RELATED: Charlottetown reaches 515 centimetres for winter, more on the way
CLICK HERE TO SEE 2015 SNOWFALL AMOUNTS FOR CHARLOTTETOWN
And when Beanz does open, bad weather means getting enough staff in to operate is a challenge, he said.
“It’s no one’s fault. The bus service is doing its best, and snow removal is doing its best. You just have to deal with it.’’
Staff are losing work but the business itself is having a hard time getting product in because it’s not getting to suppliers like ADL.
And that’s is due to factors like numerous closures at Confederation Bridge.
And if staff are having a hard time getting in, so are customers.
When major employers like the Department of Veterans Affairs sends its workforce home, that’s a lot of coffee and food orders that aren’t coming into Beanz next door.
Pharoah said he’s trying to cope by cutting back on bringing product in.
“You have to do minimum orders. I’m ordering as little as possible, as infrequently as possible, just to save some money.’’
To save money himself, Pharoah said he’s not buying as many groceries as he normally would while many of his staff are also cutting back.
Another small business owner in downtown Charlottetown points out on top of all those challenges, all that snow makes it difficult for customers to get into the area and that hurts business.
Erin McGrath-Gaudet, the P.E.I. director of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, other industries are hurting, too.
She said there have been cases where dairy farmers have had to pour milk out because the truck responsible for moving it to stores couldn’t get to the farm.
McGrath-Gaudet said the home heating industry is another example.
Bridge closures means product doesn’t make it over.
“There was a lack of product on the Island so they were really struggling to serve their customers,’’ she said. “All around, this has been a really tough winter for business and for a lot of their employees as well.’’
The manager of a downtown Charlottetown business says his staff have lost 10 per cent of their hours this month alone.
Trevor Pharoah says everyone in the small business community is feeling squeezed by the numerous winter storms and Beanz Espresso Bar & Café is no different.
“We’ve been closed this winter more than in the past 20 years,’’ said Pharoah.
“I have a full-time girl out back and she got here after missing four days of work. She’s looking to pick up shifts to get the hours and pay the bills.’’
More than 16 feet of snow has fallen in the Charlottetown area.
There have been six major snowstorms that dumped at least 30 centimetres on the capital city and two which brought more than 60 centimetres.
RELATED: Charlottetown reaches 515 centimetres for winter, more on the way
CLICK HERE TO SEE 2015 SNOWFALL AMOUNTS FOR CHARLOTTETOWN
And when Beanz does open, bad weather means getting enough staff in to operate is a challenge, he said.
“It’s no one’s fault. The bus service is doing its best, and snow removal is doing its best. You just have to deal with it.’’
Staff are losing work but the business itself is having a hard time getting product in because it’s not getting to suppliers like ADL.
And that’s is due to factors like numerous closures at Confederation Bridge.
And if staff are having a hard time getting in, so are customers.
When major employers like the Department of Veterans Affairs sends its workforce home, that’s a lot of coffee and food orders that aren’t coming into Beanz next door.
Pharoah said he’s trying to cope by cutting back on bringing product in.
“You have to do minimum orders. I’m ordering as little as possible, as infrequently as possible, just to save some money.’’
To save money himself, Pharoah said he’s not buying as many groceries as he normally would while many of his staff are also cutting back.
Another small business owner in downtown Charlottetown points out on top of all those challenges, all that snow makes it difficult for customers to get into the area and that hurts business.
Erin McGrath-Gaudet, the P.E.I. director of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, other industries are hurting, too.
She said there have been cases where dairy farmers have had to pour milk out because the truck responsible for moving it to stores couldn’t get to the farm.
McGrath-Gaudet said the home heating industry is another example.
Bridge closures means product doesn’t make it over.
“There was a lack of product on the Island so they were really struggling to serve their customers,’’ she said. “All around, this has been a really tough winter for business and for a lot of their employees as well.’’
