‘C-stores at closure risk due to rising energy bills’

Convenience stores are at risk of closing due to rising energy costs unless the government steps in, the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has warned. 

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live on Wednesday (24), ACS chief executive James Lowman told radio host Rick Edwards that a small business energy price cap is necessary to help convenience stores fight the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. 

“At the beginning of the year, typically, our members would be paying 15p per unit for electricity. They’re now being quoted upwards of 60p a unit. That’s more than quadruple the amount,” Lowman said. 

“We don’t like to catastrophise, but the sums just don’t add up. Something has got to be done to support them.” 

Currently, there is no energy price cap for businesses, which would limit the rates a supplier can charge for their default tariffs. 

He noted the strength of the retail sector, but claimed that store closures were inevitable without more support. 

“We’re a very resilient sector, very resilient during covid, very resilient during recessions generally, but if nothing is done about this particular issue there will be store closures and that will have a massive social impact,” he said. 

“While big business are also very constrained, small business can’t hedge, buy ahead of time, and do the things that try to mitigate costs, and those costs are just not sustainable,” Lowman added. 

“The energy bill for the convenience sector as a whole is £2.5 billion now, and that will continue to go up. The most effective thing the government can do is introduce a cap on energy costs because that is the driver of this really acute emergency that is facing our members and lots of other businesses,” he said.