The rising cost of living and lingering pandemic habits made it impossible for a long-time Red Deer cupcake shop to keep its doors open, say the owners.
On Jan. 6, Babycakes Cupcakery announced it had permanently closed its Clearview Market Square shop, while its booth at Gasoline Alley Farmers' Market continues to operate Friday, Saturday and Sunday under a new name yet to be determined.
Co-owner Marilyn said rising costs for consumers makes shopping at small businesses a luxury.
"They’re barely able to buy groceries. We’ve seen less and less people coming through our doors," Marilyn said.
"We still had our supporters, but there wasn’t enough and that was the problem."
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, people were also stuck in the routine of buying from sources like Amazon rather than coming out and supporting local, independent stores, she added.
Babycakes was in business for 16 years. It isn't the first local business to close in recent months, and survival is not just a Red Deer problem, said Marilyn, recalling a newscast about two small businesses in Edmonton, one a bakery with a 60-year history, shutting down.
"Again the same story. Not enough people coming through the doors and the rents were going up."
She said landlords have to realize there's only so much profit these days and eventually businesses have to examine their viability in the face of increasing rent.
Unfortunately, Marilyn expects more small businesses will have to make tough decisions.
Co-owner and baker Thirza agreed that overhead costs contributed to the closure of Babycakes, and consumers are turning more and more to franchises.
She said during the pandemic local media reminded people to support local businesses. That really helped, but the message died off after the pandemic.
"When you don’t hear it all the time, you don’t think about it. When you don’t think about it, you don't do it," said Thirza, who has owned Babycakes with Marilyn for the last eight years.
The business did what it could to reach out to the public, provided daily-baked products with a focus on natural ingredients, but it's just a really difficult time for independent businesses, she said.
Thirza said loyal customers say they're going to miss the cupcakery, but she will still be baking for the booth at Gasoline Alley Farmers' Market, which is a great spot to visit and shop.
“I’ll be venturing out to maybe cookies, muffins, as well as my cupcakes."
