Derbyshire business owner says 40-year inflation high is more damaging than Covid – and calls for government action

Debbie Porter is the managing director of Destination Digital Marketing in Bakewell.

Her firm offers marketing support to a number of local and national businesses, including Heck Foods, St. Moritz and Derbyshire-based White Peak Distillery.

Inflation in the UK has now hit 9% – the highest it has been since 1982 – and Debbie said that businesses were struggling to survive the relentless rise in costs.

“The current financial crisis is having a far wider impact on business than COVID-19 did, and it feels like a kick in the teeth after two years of the pandemic.

“During the pandemic, businesses in our local community adopted a collaborative approach to help each other get through the crisis. Although the outlook was grim, the small business community pulled together to help each other through.

“Cut to the current situation and costs have been rising at an uncontrollable rate across the board in 2022, and so many small businesses are now in a race for survival. Each new supply chain price rise is painful.”

Debbie added that she had been forced to raise her prices in recent months, but said it was unsustainable to try and keep up with inflation. She called for the Government to act to help businesses break the cycle of inflation.

“The inflationary price rises we put through earlier in the year to help us maintain our income in real terms have been swallowed up and now seem insignificant. This can’t continue.

“If we all keep putting up our prices to cope with increased costs, it will keep us on an inflationary roundabout. The Government needs to step in the break this cycle.”

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