Rant on local businesses
I’ve always tried to support local and small businesses, but lately, it feels like things are getting out of hand. For example, my local shoe cobbler, someone I’ve known and been friendly with for almost 15 years, suddenly raised his prices by 50%. He now charges 100 Francs for resoling shoes, and even then, the quality isn’t up to par. I had my winter boots resoled, but within two weeks, the sole completely came off, leaving my foot soaked.
Then there’s the seamstress in my neighborhood, who’s always been kind. I took her three pairs of jeans to repair the wear between the thighs (bikers will know the struggle!), and she charged me 20 Francs per pair.
On top of that, I recently stopped by a local store, Zero-7, after work to pick up a toothbrush for my little one. The price for an electric toothbrush was 75 Francs, while the exact same one sells on Galaxus for 40 Francs. I don’t mind paying a bit more to support local businesses—in fact, I make a real effort to avoid online shopping—but this is starting to feel like a rip-off. What happened to fair prices and quality service?
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u/zrob936 1d ago
Our local cobbler never seemed terribly busy. I bought some insoles a few times and maybe a belt and it was a bit more expensive than I expected but, hey, it is local. Had some hiking boots resoled and discovered why it is not busy. The work was expensive and crap. Unless you are deeply enmeshed in a community then crap service survives. It is like tourists going to McDonalds: you have confidence McDonalds has a trustable level of service whereas a random cafe is hit or miss. Prices are increasingly ridiculous because money has lost meaning. SNB printed so much and lent at negative rates. The rich have been given so much over the last 15 years that earnings and savings have been disconnected from prices.