The math isn't mathing for small biz
Real talk: the high street is struggling. Paul Bowen, the guy who owns Bowen Pies in Chorley, Lancashire, just dropped a major reality check on social media. Despite pulling in £100,000 in annual revenue, his Market Street shop is closing its doors. Why? Because the margins are officially ghosting him.
Bowen, who you might remember from his 2024 run on The Apprentice, pointed the finger directly at the government's latest fiscal moves. The recent hike in employer's National Insurance was the final straw—the “tipping edge,” as he put it. Between skyrocketing energy bills, business rates, and rising labor costs, he says there is simply nothing left to reinvest into the business.
The PM’s response
Prime Minister Andy Burnham jumped into the comments to acknowledge the grind, admitting that what’s happening in Chorley is a vibe being felt across the entire country. He’s acknowledging that empty storefronts and family businesses folding is a massive L for local communities.
Burnham pivoted to his recent plan, which includes a £210 million investment aimed at flipping those sad, empty buildings into community hubs, health centers, and co-working spaces. It’s an attempt to breathe life back into the high street, but for small business owners like Bowen, the immediate financial pressure of day-to-day operations remains the main character energy in this drama.
Why it matters
Bowen is publicly pressuring the government to scrap or lower employer's National Insurance, cut business rates, and address the insane energy overheads that are suffocating SMEs. He’s essentially saying: give small businesses room to breathe, and we’ll actually be able to hire people and scale up. If the government wants to keep local economies alive, they need to fix the numbers, not just the real estate.
