Area businesses try to cope with the dreaded ‘R’ word
Longtime restaurauteur Jack McFadden now offers half-portion entrees at his upscale Gables Restaurant in Pennsbury. He uses a scale to measure all meat and fish delivered to his door to make sure he is not being charged for more than he actually receives.
Recently, he started a new bar menu that offers lower-priced hamburgers, sandwiches and salads. And he’s allowing patrons to tote their own wine and beer with no additional corkage fee.
McFadden’s is feeling the pinch of the sagging economy coupled with higher operating costs. And he has plenty of company in Chester County.
Mr. Mulch, with three local stores, begins its $5 per delivery fuel surcharge April 1, its first-ever, according to employee John Harris.
Kennett Florist customers are ordering less, says owner Alie Bragg-Berstler. She’s trying to shop smarter and buys flowers closer to home, from wholesalers in New Jersey and Philadelphia, to avoid ever-higher shipping and handling fees.
At least two days a week at The 5 Senses, a West Chester gift and home decor shop on West Market Street, owner Karen Cavin’s cash register remains totally silent. Borough foot traffic is down considerably, even with the milder weather and construction barriers starting to clear around the Chester County Justice Center a block west, she said.
At Beadniks up the street, sales are sluggish, especially during the week.
Nationally, consumer confidence is at its lowest level since 2003 — and in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York at its lowest point since 1996.
