(NewsNation) —Rising prices, inflation and consumer spending habits have been changing the lives of local business owners, as inflation reached a 9.1% annual rate in June, the worst mark in nearly 41 years.
“It’s a gamble every single week. If we’re going to be able, you know, to survive in the next year,” Courtney Pierce, EO of the women’s boutique, Lucy Loft, in Tennessee, told NewsNation’s “Rush Hour” on Wednesday.
“I’m having to cut my costs to make sure that I can continue to have customers and have repeat customers,” she continued.
Pierce is certainly not alone. With the cost of everyday necessities such as gas, rent and groceries going up, people are spending less on luxury items, including clothes and jewelry.
How people paying for things is changing, too, according to Teresa Arrigo, who works with GenWealth Financial Advisors.
“They’re buying cleaning supplies on a buy-now-pay-later plan. So it seems that consumers are slow to try to change. But we are seeing tightening in our budgets,” she said.
The Nash Collection is one of Nashville’s signature apparel brands. Its storefront is parked on the busy tourist intersection of Fifth and Broadway. That has kept customers popping in, but even owner Laci Bonner says tourists are prioritizing where their cash is going.
“I mean, a trip to Nashville isn’t the cheapest? In general, I think that you’re starting to see a trend where people are very selective on how they spend their money,” Bonner said.
And with the feds hiking interest rates another three-quarters of a point, business owners such as Pierce and Bonner are preparing for more months of customers cutting back.
“It is scary. I think any business owner can relate to that in times like these.” Pierce said.