With Australia’s inflation rate reaching 6.1%, Sydney cafe owner Nelly Kalamvokis has spoken of the pressure on her business to keep customers happy, whilst also trying to support her family.
Nelly Kalamvokis opened Honey & Walnut Patisserie in Dulwich Hill last December with her husband Peter and friends Peter and Angela.
“We’re really impacted by rising costs – whether it be coffee, milk or our produce,” Nelly told news.com.au.
“We’re seeing a decline in people wanting to spend too much and we’re worried. With the rising costs, as a new business, we’re scared to raise our prices to cover what we are paying,” she added.
The mother-of-three said their decision to not raise prices has made it harder to pay grocery and household bills at home.
With the most recent increase in milk prices, Nelly said the cost of making their spanakopita doubled and in order to cover costs, they would need to raise their coffee and baked goods prices by 12 per cent.
Last month, both Coles and Woolworths announced that they would charge more for home brand milk in another hit to household budgets. The 25c increase per litre was attributed to rising prices at the farm gate which are being passed on to consumers.
However, Nelly and cafe owners alike are also contending against the rising cost of coffee making more broadly.
In March, president of the Cafe Owners and Baristas Association of Australia, David Parnham, told ABC News that coffee lovers could be paying up to $7 for a regular cup by the end of the year, citing global shortages in beans and the cost of shipping.
“The cost of shipping has become just ridiculous. It’s nearly five times the container prices of two years ago,” Parnham said.
Despite these compounding costs, Nelly said their patisserie won’t be cutting corners to lessen the burden on themselves.
“Our number one thing is quality, as well as having a range … and we pride ourselves on having a quality range with high-quality range produce,” she concluded.
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SOURCE: news.com.au
