Page 12 - aruba-today-20221114

A12 BUSINESS
Monday 14 noveMber 2022
Smaller food cos. get set for a high-

priced holiday season

By MAE ANDERSON
AP Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Holiday
celebrants in Hilo, Hawaii,
might notice something dif-
ferent about the traditional
Yule Log cake from the
Short 'N Sweet bakery this
year. Maria Short typically
makes her popular $35
bûche de Noël with two
logs combined to look like
a branch. This year, thanks
to soaring prices for eggs
and butter and other items,
she's downsizing to one Maria Short poses in her bakery, Short ‘N Sweet, in Hilo, Hawaii
straight Yule log. on Nov. 8, 2022.
"It's the same price, but Associated Press
smaller," she said. "That cuts Short N Sweet Bakery is "If bread is up 50 cents
down on size and labor." paying $123 for a case of you will still buy bread,"
Higher prices are hitting eggs that cost $42 in Octo- Pounders said. "But if it's an
everyone this holiday, but ber last year. A case of but- impulse buy or luxury spe-
food vendors are seeing ter that was $91 in October cialty item -- if chocolate-
some of the biggest in- ago; it's $138 this year. covered cookies are up $1
creases. Small businesses Among the ways Short is -- you might think twice."
that count on food-centric cutting costs, she'll use a Price increases aren't an
holidays like Thanksgiving generic box decorated option for her popular gift
and Christmas are bracing with stickers instead of us- basket business. Corpora-
for a difficult season. ing a customized box for tions often have a $50 cap
At the wholesale level, egg her desserts. And she or- and events at hotels like
prices are more than triple dered a cookie printer weddings can have a $20
what they were a year rather than having bakers sweet spot. So, Pounders
ago, milk prices are up 34% hand-pipe frosting, to save has made adjustments. In
and butter is up 70%, ac- on labor costs. some cases, she has re-
cording to data from the Sarah Pounders, who co- placed a $20 bag of cof-
U.S. Department of Agri- owns Nashville-based fee, which is up $3, with less
culture. Businesses are also Made in TN, a retailer of lo- expensive hot chocolate.
paying more for everything cally made food and gifts, Or she puts one less choco-
from packages to labor. says the local vendors who late bar in the basket.
Many owners are raising make the items she sells are She's also buying more
prices to offset the higher facing higher prices. The items that could sell
costs. But raising prices too cost of butter needed to throughout the year and
much risks driving away the make cookies is five times less seasonal inventory like
crucial holiday shopper. the price from a year ago peppermint bark and hot
So, businesses are adapt- and cardboard packaging chocolate on a stick.
ing: adjusting the way they is double. "Every year is a guess, and
make products, changing Made in TN has raised some the economy makes it
gift basket components prices and is selling other even more volatile," she
and adding free gifts in- items for less profit. Cus- said.
stead of giving discounts, tomers are already paying Eric Ludy, co-founder of
among other steps. more for things like gas, Cheese Brothers, an on-
Maria Short says that even clothing and cars, as well line purveyor of Wisconsin
for Hawaii, where the cost as services like eating out cheese and gift baskets,
of living is among the high- and travel, so they're not faces a tricky task this
est of any U.S. state, the as quick to spend as they holiday season as he tries
price increases are "dras- might have been in prior to offset higher costs for
tic." years. They're noticing the packaging, labor — and
For example, she says, the price increases, she said. cheese. Half of his busi-
ness comes in the weeks
between Black Friday and
Christmas.
Cheese Brothers has nomi-
nally raised prices for their
cheese – a block of ched-
dar will cost customers
$7.50 instead of $7, for ex-
ample. Ludy says he'll also
rely less on discounts this
year and more on gifts and
other giveaways.q